(Adds coments on exports)

MAPUTO, March 6 (Reuters) - The U.N. World Food Programme (WFP) in Mozambique is seeking $5.5 million to feed about 100,000 people in the northwestern province of Tete, spokesman Peter Transburg said on Friday.

Transburg said the WFP had helped 54,000 of the 97,000 in the region needing food. He added the number of people affected by drought could rise because of low rainfall in the central provinces.

"WFP urgently needs $5.5 million to locally purchase roughly 6,000 tonnes of food commodities for assistance programmes across Mozambique in March and April, particularly in the northern province of Tete," he said

"WFP intended to increase assistance to all 97,000 people, including additional populations in Cahora Bassa and Changara, but resource constraints have left us unable to increase assistance." The government says 450,000 people need food aid in southern and central areas due to poor rains and high food prices and it has asked the WFP to increase its humanitarian assistance in seven provinces until harvest time in April.

Mozambicans in central and southern provinces are still recovering from devastating floods after the Zambezi River burst its banks due heavy rains in neighbouring Zambia early this year, while drought hit other parts of the country.

However, exports -- which include gas, beans, cotton, tobacco, timber and prawns -- were expected to remain stable in 2009 despite a global economic crisis.

Joao Macaringue, the chief executive of the government's Institute for Export Promotion, told Reuters demand for Mozambican produce should weather the downturn.

"The majority of our export products are agricultural-based (so) I can see a room for some of our products finding a space on the international market," he said.

"Apart from that we have energy which is on demand particularly in the southern African region."

The value of Mozambique's exports stood at $2.65 billion in 2008, 10 percent up on 2007. (Reporting by Charles Mangwiro)

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