Bottlenecks and infrastructure damage have been holding up aid efforts in Haiti, where Tuesday's earthquake has left as many as 45,000-50,000 dead.
There is little sign of humanitarian supplies beyond the Port-au-Prince airport, and correspondents say there is increasing anger among survivors.
Many are spending a third night without shelter in the ruined capital.
A US aircraft carrier is due to arrive off the coast of Haiti to help co-ordinate the movement of supplies.
President Barack Obama pledged a huge aid effort, but warned it would take time for help to reach people.
Mr Obama and French President Nicolas Sarkozy, working with Brazil, Canada and other countries, will organise a conference on reconstruction in Haiti, the French presidency has announced.
'Nothing coming'
But on the ground, correspondents said there was little immediate sign of a co-ordinated relief effort.
Planes queued to land at the airport, while the port was too damaged to use. Roads were blocked by debris.
The BBC's Andy Gallacher in Port-au-Prince says those that survived the massive earthquake are now dying in huge numbers, and clean water, food and medical supplies are desperately needed.
Bodies piled up on the streets and bulldozers were being used to remove the dead, and there is mounting frustration and anger.
"We hear on the radio that rescue teams are coming from the outside, but nothing is coming," said one man, Jean-Baptiste Lafontin Wilfried.
"Unfortunately, they're slowly getting more angry and impatient," said David Wimhurst, a spokesman for the Brazilian-led UN peacekeeping mission in Haiti.
"We're all aware that the situation is getting more tense as the poorest people who need so much are waiting for deliveries."
The Red Cross estimates 45,000-50,000 people have died since Tuesday's earthquake.
It estimates that, in total, up to three million people in Haiti have been affected.
Race against time
Speaking in Washington on Thursday, Mr Obama said some US rescuers were already on the ground in Haiti and more were on their way.
He promised the country "every element of our national capacity, our diplomacy, and development assistance, the power of our military and most importantly, the compassion of our country" following the disaster.
"To the people of Haiti, we say clearly and with conviction, you will not be forsaken, you will not be forgotten," he said.
Mr Obama also promised an immediate $100m for Haiti's relief effort and said that investment would grow over the coming year to aid long-term recovery.
The USS Carl Vinson aircraft carrier and the USS Bataan, carrying a marine expeditionary unit, are on their way to Haiti.
Gen Douglas Fraser, head of the US Southern Command, told reporters that logistics would be the key to providing relief and that US forces would strive to make Port-au-Prince's port functional again.
The US Federal Aviation Authority earlier temporarily stopped civilian relief flights to Haiti at the Haitian government's request because there was not enough space on the ground for more planes.
To magnify this image of Port-au-Prince mouse over the left-hand panel
Aid groups say it is a race against time to find people trapped under the rubble of collapsed buildings.
UN emergency relief co-ordinator John Holmes said local facilities were overwhelmed.
A British rescue team with heavy lifting gear and dogs has reached Haiti. Other plane-loads of rescuers and relief supplies are being sent from China, the EU, Canada, Russia and Latin American nations.
Cuba had more than 300 doctors in Haiti before the earthquake and they have been treating the injured in field hospitals.
US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who cancelled a trip to Asia to deal with the crisis, said Haiti's recovery was "going to be a long-term effort".
The World Bank is funding $100m of emergency aid.
The World Food Programme is working on supplying 15,000 tonnes of food and the Red Cross has begun a $10m appeal.
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