AfDB said it will focus on accelerating food output by facilitating the purchase of fertilizers and farming inputs and developing infrastructure to help counter a food crisis.

"We will be committing another $1 billion in support of agriculture, rural infrastructure and in support of research and extension services," AfDB vice president Arunma Oteh said on Zambia's state-run ZNBC TV.

Oteh, who was in Lusaka to attend a Euromoney investment conference, said the bank has yet to make plans on disbursing the money, and gave no timeline for the financing.

It was also unclear if the funds would be disbursed as loans or grants, which the bank has traditionally provided to African countries.

Oteh said the global food crisis was threatening to worsen the plight of the continent's poor, amid already crippling challenges including AIDS and civil wars.

Many developing countries, especially net importers in Africa, have been hit by a surge in commodity prices in recent months, with foodstuffs such as wheat and rice rising to record highs.

The world's poorest continent has been unable to feed itself for decades, leaving many people dependent on food aid.

But in recent years, several countries, including Zambia, have managed to boost output, some using money freed from debt repayments after receiving relief from Western and international creditors.

The AfDB, in partnership with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), has supported agricultural development in Africa with investments of around $3.8 billion.