By Jamal Adel.
Tripoli, 31 December:
Despite rows over lack of funding, the two-day Ghat . . .[restrict]International Sahara festival has passed off successfully with a full programme of camel races, folk music and visits to historic villages around the town.
This is the nineteenth time that the festival has been held in Ghat in the far south west corner of the country. Deputy president of the festival committee Abu Bakr Kranfolda told the Libya Herald that part of the event was the celebration of Tuareg culture.
In a reprise of the financial problems that faced the Hun date festival in November, the Ghat organisers complained that promised central funding from the Ministry of Culture had never been provided. However as with Hun, locals stepped forward to make up the shortfall and there appeared to be no reproach towards officials from Tripoli who attended the festival. One of the guests of honour at the closing ceremony was GNC deputy president Ezzidine Mohammed Al-Awami. [/restrict]
