The Head of the Libyan Presidential Council, Mohammed Menfi, and Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibah will attend the International Conference on Development and Immigration, at the invitation of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, in Rome on Sunday.
The attendance of Menfi and Dbeibah in the conference of the countries of the Mediterranean basin and the Middle East aims to strengthen efforts to stop illegal immigration influxes.
The Italian government said the conference "seeks to help countries in Africa reduce motifs of immigration to Europe, adding that it will also focus on building partnerships for projects in different sectors including agriculture, infrastructure and health." It added that the conference "aims to control immigration, combat human trafficking, and promote economic development according to a new model of cooperation among countries.
Reuters cited a number of Italian officials as saying that the countries participating in the conference are Libya, Turkey, Tunisia, Algeria and the UAE, along with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund.
The conference comes one week after the European Union has signed an agreement with Tunisia, one of the hotspots for immigrant departures, in which the bloc pledged up to 1 billion euros ($1.1 billion) in aid to tackle human traffickers and support the country's battered economy.
Human Rights Watch said that the agreement “did not contain guarantees that prevent the Tunisian authorities from violating the rights of immigrants and asylum seekers,” in reference to President Kais Saied's crackdown on Africans.
