Libyan bid to link Mid-East and Africa

Delegates from nearly 70 countries are in Tripoli for the gathering

By Frank Gardner in Tripoli

Libya is hosting the first international conference for Arab and African non-governmental organisations.

Delegates from nearly 70 countries have arrived in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, for the three-day gathering. Most of the 700 delegates are from Africa.

The lobby of Tripoli's Bab Al-Bahr hotel, where the delegates are staying, is filled with the sound of a hundred tongues and a kaleidoscope of national costumes.

Tall Mauritanian men in flowing cotton robes mingle with sombre-suited Iraqis. Libyans in embroidered waistcoats stroll beside West Africans in dazzling green pyjama suits.

Women too have crossed continents to be here. Some are Arab and demurely veiled. Others are African and draped in elaborate jewellery.

Muammar Gaddafi is playing an increasingly important role in Africa

It is exactly the sort of meeting of delegates from less developed countries that the Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, is fond of hosting.

But the conference organisers are keen to distance the government's role.

They say this is purely a people's event, aimed at uniting NGOs across the Middle East and Africa.

The event's coordinator, Rafia Al-Madani, told the BBC that delegates would be discussing how to pool their efforts in the fields of education, welfare, youth and human rights.

He said the event's aims were non-political. But he added that it was based on last year's Sirte declaration, which called for African countries to unite.

In recent years, Libya's leader has largely turned his attention away from the Middle East and focused instead on Africa.

The high attendance at this conference shows that interest has been well received by some, even if many delegates here are still unclear as to how much it can actually achieve.