President Vladimir Putin told African leaders gathered in Moscow that Russia does not engage in "neo-colonial exploitation" of the continent, positioning the country as an alternative partner to former Western colonial powers.

Putin made the remarks on Wednesday at the third Russia-Africa Summit, attended by delegations from 48 African countries, including 22 represented by their heads of state.

"Africa is increasingly asserting itself as one of the key players in the global economy and politics. However, the emergence of a multipolar world is, of course, no easy task; it faces resistance from countries that are not prepared to accept this reality," Putin told the summit.

The Russian president criticised what he described as "active attempts by Western countries" to push African nations into debt and force them to accept financial resources on predatory terms, which he said slowed long-term development.

"Our business does not engage in the predatory, neo-colonial exploitation of natural and human resources, but rather expands the processing of raw materials locally, thereby creating new jobs and generating tax revenue," Putin said.

He told the gathering that Russia had supplied 13 million metric tonnes of agricultural products to Africa in the first nine months of this year alone, and said Moscow was prepared to expand the geographical reach of its agricultural shipments.

The summit comes as attacks in the Black Sea continue to disrupt grain exports from both Russia and Ukraine, adding pressure to food supply chains across the continent.

Putin is expected to hold one-on-one meetings with individual African leaders on topics ranging from trade and security to grain supplies and arms deals.

The summit is expected to conclude with a final declaration on deepening cooperation between Russia and African nations.