Japanese and African leaders pledged to fight terrorism and emphasized the importance of rules-based maritime order as they wrapped up a Japan-led international conference on the continent's development.

In the Nairobi Declaration adopted at the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD) on Sunday, the leaders also agreed to promote investment in infrastructure that leads to job creation in the fast-growing region.

"Japan's public and private sectors will offer cooperation for the development that is led by Africa itself," Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a news conference after wrapping up the sixth TICAD, which was held this time in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi.