The President of Pakistan has honoured international Christian aid agency World Vision with the 'Star of Sacrifice' award for its emergency relief work after the October 2005 earthquake that killed 73,000 people in northern Pakistan.

President Pervez Musharraf told representatives of the organisations being honoured: "I wish to express firsthand the gratitude of the people and the government. With your assistance we were able to overcome the needs of the immediate aftermath. We have a long way to travel, still."

The award was presented at a ceremony in Washington recently, nearly one year after communities were devastated by the 7.6 magnitude earthquake. The award recognises "sacrifice and dedicated service to humanity".

World Vision responded quickly to the earthquake. The destruction of homes, schools, hospitals and other infrastructure in some areas of the North West Frontier Province and Pakistan-administered Kashmir was absolute. Local populations faced a bitter Himalayan winter with little shelter or clothing left to protect them.

Emergency specialists with World Vision reached the quake zone within 48 hours, and the agency quickly sent a medical team and airlifted vital supplies such as food, blankets and tents, reaching more than 450 villages.

The relief agency also set about establishing 52 temporary schools and five new Child Friendly Spaces (CFS's) in the remote mountainous areas of the Saraash and Siran valleys, having conducted livelihood, child protection and education surveys.

Since the earthquake, almost 143,000 people - more than 31,000 households - have benefited from World Vision relief supplies and food.

The disaster dealt its greatest blow to children, killing more than 19,000. An estimated 2.2 million children were affected, including more than 10,000 who lost at least one parent.

John Schenk, a World Vision emergency relief spokesman in Pakistan, said: "Progress has been made and we can honestly say that children are better off, but it is not over. A lot of people are still alive today because of the relief effort, but much remains to be done".

Other non-governmental organisations that received the award included ADRA International, Catholic Relief Services, the Hidaya Foundation and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).