The prime minister of Libya’s UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) Fayez al-Sarraj said he will step down at the end of October and hand over power to a new executive authority.

Efforts to find a long-term political solution in the North African country seem promising amid talks between Libya's rival factions on ending the conflict.

Reports indicate that earlier in September the two parties agreed to hold elections within 18 months and appoint a new government.

According to news broadcaster Al Jazeera, in a brief televised speech on Wednesday, al-Sarraj said UN-brokered talks between the country's rival factions had led to a "new preparatory phase"; to unify Libyan institutions and pave the way for parliamentary and presidential elections.

"I declare my sincere intention to hand over the tasks of power to the coming executive authority in a time no later than October,"; al-Sarraj said in a televised address from the capital Tripoli, writes German news outlet Deutsche Welle.

The GNA is based in Tripoli, while eastern Libya and much of the south is controlled by renegade military commander Khalifa Haftar's Libyan National Army (LNA).

According to a report by DW, differences within the al-Sarraj government surfaced last month during protests over corruption and power cuts in Tripoli and other western cities. Similar protests were reported in country's south and east.

Libya has been in chaos since the ousting of former long-time leader Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, after which two centres of power emerged: the GNA and the LNA.