Rockstar Bono has told the government to act as the "interface" between Africa and the West in the effort to abolish poverty.

The U2 frontman was speaking at the Labour Party conference on Wednesday in the special guest speaker's slot previously graced by Bill Clinton and Nelson Mandela.

The Irishman and anti-debt campaigner called on the conference to ensure ambitious commitments on the developing world are met next when Britain holds the presidency of both the G8 and EU.

In an emotional and rapturously received speech he reported that over "6,000 Africans are dying every day" from malnutrition and diseases such as Aids.

"That's not a cause, that is an emergency and that's why I'm here today," he said.

"This is not about charity, it is about justice," the singer added.

Appealing to the party's history and "toughness", he invoked legendary leaders Keir Hardie and Clement Atlee.

"I don't care if you are old Labour or new Labour," he said.

"What is your party about if it's not about this?"

He also paid tribute to Tony Blair and Gordon Brown, whom he labelled the "John Lennon and Paul McCartney of the global development stage".

"The promises they have already made will save hundreds of thousands of lives," he said.

He argued that Britain's links with Africa through the Commonwealth make it ideally placed to act as the "interface" between the developed and developing worlds and called for 2005 to become a "real moment in history".