Manila - Eighteen people were killed in flashfloods and landslides caused by two weeks of heavy rains in the southern and eastern Philippines, the Office of Civil Defence (OCD) said Friday.

Eight fatalities were reported in the eastern provinces of Northern Samar, Catanduanes and Capiz, while 10 were killed in the southern province of Misamis Oriental and Agusan del Sur.

The victims drowned or were buried in landslides, the OCD said.

Nine people were still reported missing and feared dead in the affected provinces.

More than 314,000 people were adversely affected by the heavy rains in 13 eastern and southern provinces, where nearly 3,000 houses were damaged or destroyed, the OCD said.

In the southern region of Mindanao, the United Nations' World Food Programme (WFP) said it was providing up to 631 metric tons of rice to more than 125,000 people affected by the bad weather.

The WFP has been providing rice to thousands of residents displaced by fighting between the military and Muslim separatist rebels in Mindanao, which flared in August.

WFP Country Director Stephen Anderson said most people affected by the rains in Mindanao were already in evacuation centres.

Anderson said the displaced residents were "reportedly highly vulnerable due to growing food insecurity."

"WFP fully understands that the situation remains fluid, and we will continue to work closely with the government and non-governmental agencies on the ground to further assess and adjust our response accordingly," he said. (dpa)