Gambian president-elect Adama Barrow readied to meet world leaders on Saturday at a summit jointly hosted by France in Mali as the international community strives for an end to The Gambia's political crisis.
Barrow flew to Bamako unexpectedly after holding crisis talks in Banjul with Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari, Liberian leader Ellen Johnson Sirleaf and Ghana's John Mahama.
The delegation of west African heavyweights also met with Gambian President Yahya Jammeh, who is refusing to cede power after disputing the result of a December 1 election that Barrow won.
In a sign of Barrow's growing international clout, a French diplomatic source told AFP that President Francois Hollande "intends to meet" Barrow, while the former businessman was due to sit down with west African leaders to discuss his nation's future.
The Economic Community Of West African States (ECOWAS), a 15-nation bloc, has repeatedly called on Jammeh to respect the result of the vote and step down after 22 years in power.
Jammeh has made it clear he will not stand aside until the country's Supreme Court decides on his legal challenge seeking to annul the result of last month's polls, which he had initially conceded. The ruling is unlikely to happen before May.
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