
Melania Trump revealed her maternal side on Thursday morning when she comforted a shy little girl after landing in Malawi for the second stop of her Africa tour.

The first lady landed at Lilongwe International Airport in Lumbadzi after a six-hour flight from Ghana, during which she changed out of her casual Converse sneakers and jeans in favor of a beige $745 Joseph shirt dress and a pair of $625 Manolo Blahnik heels.

Melania waved happily at the crowds as she emerged from the presidential aircraft, before making her way down the steps and onto the tarmac, where she was greeted by Malawi's first lady Gertrude Maseko, crowds of cheering children, and a rather solemn-looking schoolgirl, who presented the 48-year-old with a large bouquet of flowers.

Smile! Melania Trump was seen comforting a shy little girl upon her arrival in Malawi for the second stop of her Africa tour

Don't worry! The youngster seemed slightly put off by all the attention, but was quickly cheered up by the 48-year-old who spent a few minutes chatting with her, after being presented with a bouquet of flowers

Conversation: Melania placed her hand on the little girl's back as she exchanged a few words with her upon her arrival

Sweet moment: The mother-of-one smiled at the little girl, and appeared to be trying to make her feel more comfortable

Landing: Melania landed in the capital of Lilongwe on Thursday for the second stop of her solo visit to Africa, wearing a chic $745 Joseph shirt dress and a pair of $625 Manolo Blahnik heels

Clearly sensing the youngster's unease, mother-of-one Melania was seen crouching down to the ground and patting the flower girl comfortingly on the back, while smiling and chattering away to her.

Melania's friendly words clearly worked, and the little girl, who was wearing a blue school uniform and black shoes, appeared to perk up slightly as their conversation continued.

Shortly after her arrival in Malawi, Melania's husband, President Donald Trump, took to Twitter to praise his wife, congratulating her on the success of her tour thus far.

'Our country’s great First Lady, Melania, is doing really well in Africa,' he wrote. 'The people love her, and she loves them! It is a beautiful thing to see.'

During her trip to Lilongwe, Melania was scheduled to visit a local primary school and tour classrooms, observe an English lesson, meet teachers, and donate textbooks and Be Best-branded soccer balls.

She was seen arriving at Chipala Primary School and delightedly waving to the waiting crowd as head teacher Maureen Masi showed her around the premises, while a large group of students and teachers watched on.

Melania changed her shoes for that part of the visit, swapping her Manolo Blahnik heels for flat snakeskin loafers - the same $49.95 Zara pair that she was seen wearing on Wednesday while touring the Cape Coast Castle - a former slave-trading site - on West Africa's Gold Cost.

Visit: During her trip to Lilongwe, Melania visited Chipala Primary School, a local primary school, with head teacher Maureen Masi showing her around the premises, including the soccer field

Greetings: The first lady waved to children and others as she arrived at the school and was taken out to the soccer area

Switcheroo: Melania changed out of her pricey suede Manolo Blahnik heels (right) in favor of some $49.95 snakeskin-print flats from Zara (left) before heading to the school

Activities: During her visit, Melania was scheduled to tour classrooms, observe an English lesson, meet teachers, and donate textbooks and soccer balls

Ready for a game? One of the young players handed Melania a ball at one point, although she didn't seem overly eager to jump into the action

Branding: Melania donated several baskets of Be Best-branded soccer balls to the school, and was no doubt delighted to see the children playing with them

Introduction: There was a massive crowd of children and teachers gathered around as Melania was given her tour

Fun: Melania looked to be having a great time during the visit, despite getting slightly windswept

The shoe change was certainly a sensible choice, because part of Melania's school tour involved her heading out onto a dirt soccer field, where she happily cheered on several young players as they practiced.

At one point, Melania was pictured handing one of the soccer balls to a player, however she didn't appear to make any attempt to actually join in the game - instead choosing to leave that up to the young experts who were happily running around the field as she watched on.

The experience no doubt reminded Melania of her own son, 12-year-old Barron, who is known to be a keen soccer player and actually plays for a local D.C. team.

In August, the president told FIFA president Gianni Infantino that his son Barron 'loves soccer', while discussing the 2026 World Cup, which will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

One month earlier, Trump was given a soccer ball by Russian president Vladimir Putin during a press conference, and he promptly threw threw the ball to Melania while noting that the first couple would give it to their son as a gift.

The first lady, whose son attends private school St. Andrew’s in Potomac, Maryland, also had the chance to sit in on a few lessons, joining two students at the front of the classroom during what appeared to be an English language class.

Melania was seen leaning over to help one youngster read from a book, and also watched on as one of the teachers instructed the class at a chalkboard, using a wooden pointer to indicate to different words, like 'leg', that had been written in several columns.

Learning: Melania sat in on what appeared to be an English language lesson, watching on as a teacher spoke to the class

Crowds: Dozens of uniform-clad children took part in the class

Helping hand: During the language lesson, Melania, whose 12-year-old son Barron attends a private school in Maryland, leaned over to help one youngster with her reading

Getting involved: She happily joined in with the lesson, reading books and speaking words out loud

Greetings: Melania was led around several different areas of the school, including an outdoor classroom, where a group of students was gathered in front of a chalkboard

Lessons: Melania perched on the edge of a cement bench as the teacher addressed the class

Happy: Several of the kids stood up to speak to the first lady, as she looked on with a wide smile

Many of the young children were seen wearing name signs around their necks, with the two children sitting next to her in the classroom both wearing cardboard labels with their monikers written in marker.

She was also greeted with a song performed by some of the students.

Wearing their uniforms - dresses with red collars for the girls and collared shirts and shorts for the boys - the youngsters sang: 'We are happy today to see you. Welcome, welcome, welcome, welcome, welcome all of you. We are happy today. We are happy to see you.'

The first lady got a very different view of how to educate young children as she visited the school, which has benefited from US assistance but still struggles with an enrollment of more than 8,500 students; this over-population sees some children taking lessons outdoors, where they sit shoulder-to-shoulder on loose, red dirt.

Melania's visit to the school was aimed at highlighting a USAID scheme to support African schools, in the wake of her husband's move to roll back the US foreign aid budget, a suggestion that has been criticized by both Republican and Democratic lawmakers.

In particular, the first lady, who spoke out to praise the students that she met during her trip, used the visit to the primary school to promote a USAID reading program that has distributed 9.6 million books to Malawi's schools, and Melania was on-hand as the US ambassador handed over another 1.4 million books.

'I wanted to be here to see the successful programs that [the] United States is providing the children and thank you for everything you’ve done,' she said during the donation ceremony, which was held inside the school’s library.

Afternoon stroll: After her visit to the local school, Melania joined Malawi's first lady at the Statehouse, where they enjoyed a private afternoon tea, before taking a walk around the grounds

Cheery: Melania, who changed back into her Manolo Blahnik heels before her visit to the Statehouse, seemed to be getting on famously with Gertrude, who had herself changed out of the blue suit she wore in the morning and into a green dress

Beautiful: The tour took place in the early evening, just as the sun was starting to go down

Melania also reflected on the visit later at a meet-and-greet with embassy staff at the ambassador’s residence, saying: 'What an amazing experience. Meeting those children and understanding their different way of life is why I wanted to travel here.

'I was heartened to spend time with the students and was honored to donate school supplies and soccer balls.'

She then added: 'My husband and I appreciate all that you’re doing to serve our country.'

After her trip to the school, Melania then traveled to the Statehouse, where she enjoyed a private tea with her fellow first lady Gertrude - just as she did with the first lady of Ghana during the first day of her trip.

The first ladies also took a walk through the Statehouse gardens together, and are expected to watch a traditional dance performance this afternoon.

Melania opened her first extended solo international trip on Tuesday in Ghana, arriving in the African country after a 12-hour flight from Washington, D.C. Her day in the capital of Accra was spent visiting a local hospital to learn more about local welfare initiatives for children, while also getting the chance to promote her Be Best initiative.

She then enjoyed afternoon tea with her Ghanaian counterpart at the presidential palace in Accra, and on Wednesday, Melania toured the Cape Coast Castle, a former slave-trading site on West Africa's Gold Coast, after meeting with local Fante tribe chiefs in order to ask for their permission to visit the UNESCO site.

Celebration: The first lady was met by cheering crowds and dancers, with many waving both the American flag and the flag of Malawi as Melania walked past

Counterpart: Malawi's first lady Gertrude Mutharika greeted Melania as she stepped off the plane; the pair are set to visit a local primary school together

Friendship: Melania and Gertrude will also enjoy a private tea together on Thursday afternoon

Quick change! Melania changed out of the jeans and Converse sneakers she was seen wearing at the airport in Ghana during the six-hour flight, before landing in Malawi in a new ensemble

Early start: The first lady left Ghana in the morning on Thursday, boarding her presidential plane at Kotoka International Airport, which is where she first landed in Africa on Tuesday

Melania became emotional as she visited the 17th Century slave trading outpost, which is located two-and-a-half hours from the capital of Accra, where she stayed the night before.

Emotional: On Wednesday, Melania visited the Cape Coast Castle, a former slave-trading site that is located on West Africa's Gold Coast, two and a half hours outside of Accra

She spent around an hour at the castle, touring its dungeons and walking through the sacred 'Door of No Return' which thousands of slaves passed through in the 1800s before boarding cargo ships which ferried them across the Atlantic to the Americas to work for white masters.

After her tour, Melania said that the experience was something she would 'never forget', describing the castle as a 'special place'.

During her first day in Ghana, Melania paid a visit to a local hospital, where she was seen speaking with mothers and their children in the waiting room while handing out Be Best-branded blankets and teddies.

The first lady seemed particularly captivated by one six-month-old baby boy during her visit, and spend several minutes cradling the adorable tot and speaking to him and his mother.

According to her spokesperson, Stephanie Grisham, the focus of Melania's tour, which also includes trips to Kenya and Egypt, is humanitarian efforts, specifically those funded by US government aid, and those that work to better the lives of children.

Another key purpose of her tour is to promote 'education, healthcare, some conservation, and tourism'.

Melania is expected to return to Washington, D.C. on October 7.