Japan will host African leaders for a development conference starting Wednesday, presenting itself as an alternative to China as the continent faces a debt crisis.

Representatives from around 50 African countries are expected to attend the 9th Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD), including Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Kenyan President William Ruto, and UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Emissaries from Cameroon, Ivory Coast and Senegal are also expected in the archipelago for these three days of discussions.

"The debt and liquidity crisis on the African continent is altering the socio-economic environment and limiting the fiscal space available to governments to provide a safety net for their citizens," President Ramaphosa said in a statement.

China has invested heavily in Africa over the past decade, funding billions of dollars through corporate financing for the construction of seaports, railways, roads, and other infrastructure projects.

But African countries are now facing a "wave" of debt to China and private creditors, the Lowy Institute, an Australian think tank, warned in May.

Added to this is the reduction in Western aid, which many African countries are suffering, particularly since the dismantling of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) by US President Donald Trump.

The conference is also expected to discuss possible free trade agreements between Japan and African countries, loan guarantees and investment incentives for Japanese companies, according to Japanese media.

But for Keidanren, a major Japanese lobbyist, Tokyo still has to convince these nations.

"By actively contributing to solving the social problems facing the countries of the South, Japan must be chosen as a trustworthy partner," Keidanren observed in a note published in June.

"Rather than focusing on our own needs, we want to carefully identify the needs of our partners and gain their trust, thereby fulfilling our commitments as a nation," the Japanese prime minister said on Tuesday.

For Japan, Africa represents a source of opportunities because of its young population and natural resources.

"We will discuss how we can leverage these human and material resources as a source of vitality and connect them to Japan's growth and global prosperity," said Shigeru Ishiba.

Japan is expected to commit at the conference to training 30,000 artificial intelligence experts over the next three years to promote digitalization in the industry, Japanese news agency Kyodo News reported.