Speaking to the BBC at the end of a three-day visit to neighbouring Liberia, Mohamed Ibn Chambas said there was "no alternative to dialogue”.

“All Guineans need to sit down, sit around the table and try to find ways in which they can agree, form consensus and focus” on holding elections, he said.

“Let’s get all parties to sit down... to see what reasonable calendar can now be agreed to go for legislative elections and then we can take one problem at a time.”

The West African country has been shaken by weeks of anti-government protests, including deadly clashes, fuelled by suspicions that President Alpha Conde is seeking to prolong his rule.

Mr Conde has been president since 2010.

His second term ends next year, but his opponents say he now wants to push through a constitutional amendment that would allow him to run for a third term in 2020.

The president has not commented.