The US today donated $29 million (€29.8m) to Malawi to help it cope with a famine threatening one-third of the country's people.
The head of the US Agency for International Development (USAID), Mr Andrew Natsios, said the money was "to compliment the emergency food assistance of 74,000 tonnes" already donated.
"We will do everything possible to avoid loss of life and deal with the crisis," he added, calling the food shortages "very severe."
Mr Natsios, who is also set to visit Zambia, Mozambique and South Africa, said the US was concerned with the region's hunger because it was affecting up to 70 per cent of the rural population.
Mr Natsios signed the latest aid deal with Finance Minister Mr Friday Jumbe.
Malawi has a 600,000-tonne shortfall of maize, the country's staple food, leaving about 3.2 million threatened by famine. About 60 per cent of Malawi's 11 million population live in poverty.
While in Malawi, Mr Natsios' team was to assess the US government's immediate humanitarian response and longer-term programs for combating poverty through health, education and agricultural policies, the US embassy said in a statement.
The team held meetings with senior officials from Malawi's government, the UN, donors and the private sector.
AFP