French President Emmanuel Macron met with athletes and entertainers in Algeria's second city of Oran on Saturday, after which he will end his visit with a "new pact" aimed at restoring ties with the former French colony, AFP reported.

The aim of the three-day visit is to turn the page on months of tension with the North African nation, which celebrated 60 years of independence earlier this year after 132 years of French rule.

It also comes at a time when European powers are trying to replace Russian energy imports, including supplies from Algeria, Africa's biggest gas exporter, which in turn is seeking to play a more active role in the region.

Macron will visit a hilltop chapel and an iconic record store in Oran, the spiritual home of Rai music, before meeting youth and athletes and watching break dancers perform.

Later, he and his Algerian counterpart Abdelmajid Tebboune will sign a joint declaration to renew a concrete and ambitious partnership, according to a statement from the French presidency.

On Friday evening, Macron had dinner with Algerian writer Kamel Daoud and other Oran figures.

He also announced that 8,000 more Algerian students would be admitted to study in France this year, in addition to the 30,000 already in the country.

Macron announced a "new page" in relations on Thursday after meeting with Tebbun and announcing the formation of a joint commission of historians to study the colonial period and the devastating eight-year war that ended it.

But in France, both left and right politicians were outraged by the proposal.