Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga held talks with Ghana's president on Wednesday on the crisis in Ivory Coast, after his latest mediation bid failed to resolve the impasse.

West African nations have threatened to use force if Ivory Coast strongman Laurent Gbagbo does not quit power, but neighbouring Ghana has ruled out sending troops and opposes a military intervention.

"I'm in Ghana to brief the president about the mediation efforts so far and also to seek his advice on the way forward to resolving the Ivorian crisis," Odinga, the African Union mediator for Ivory Coast, told reporters.

"Ghana is a major player in Africa and has a role to play in resolving this issue."

Odinga then went into closed-door talks with Ghana President John Atta Mills.

"Ghana is committed to the mediation efforts being made by ECOWAS to ensure that the crisis is resolved as early as possible," Mills told reporters beforehand, referring to the 15-member Economic Community of West African States.

Odinga left Abidjan earlier Wednesday saying he had failed to achieve a breakthrough in the political crisis and that time was running out for a negotiated resolution.