Cameroon’ s 92-year-old President Paul Biya held his first campaign rally Tuesday in the country's restive Far North region, as the world's oldest head of state seeks to extend his 43-year rule in the October 12 presidential election.

Addressing a crowd of supporters at a stadium in the town of Maroua, Biya promised to step up security in the region plagued by terrorist attacks, curb youth unemployment and improve road infrastructure and social amenities if he is elected for an eighth term.

“I am well aware of the problems that concern you, I know the unfulfilled expectations that make you doubt the future,” he said in his speech. “Based on my own experience, I can assure you that these problems are not insurmountable."

Cameroon’s Far North Region, which has been plagued by attacks and kidnappings for ransom by the terrorist group Boko Haram, accounts for nearly 20% of the country’s 8.2 million eligible voters.

Regular trips to Europe

Two of the nine opposition candidates in the election and Biya’s former allies — Bello Bouba Maigari and Issa Tchiroma Bakary — command a strong following in this majority Muslim region that is also one of Cameroon’s poorest.

The outing is Biya’s first in a campaign from which he has been noticeably absent, having only recently returned from a weeklong stay in Switzerland.

No official reason for his stay abroad has been given but the Cameroonian president has regularly traveled to Europe for private stays and medical treatment in recent years. Biya is rarely seen in public .

At least 43% of the country’s citizens live in poverty as measured by core living standards such as income, education and health, according to UN estimates.

Opposition divided

Still, Biya is likely to prevail over the other candidates in the October 12 election, especially after his most threatening rival, Maurice Kamto, was barred from running in August and the opposition remains divided.

A two-term presidential limit was removed through a parliamentary vote in 2008.