At the end of a one-day donors' conference attended by more than 70 governments, financial institutions and aid groups, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz said hopes of raising the 5.2 billion dollars needed to rebuild the quake-hit zone had been surpassed.

"We really thank the countries, we thank all of those present," he said, adding that the pledges "will give us more strength to rebuild... so that the area can be restored quickly as soon as possible.

He later told reporters: "The world has shown we are not isolated. We are on the world map, we have respect, we have pride in the world."

The October 8 quake, one of the worst natural disasters in a century, left nearly 74,000 people dead, twice as many injured and 3.5 million homeless, most of them in northern Pakistani Kashmir.

Pakistan said it was in a race against time to get help to survivors before the harsh Himalayan winter sets in.

The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank pledged one billion dollars each in quake assistance, mostly in the form of loans. The Islamic Development Bank said it would increase its help from 250 million dollars to 501 million dollars.

Aziz said the single biggest donor country was Saudi Arabia, which chipped in 573 million dollars in loans and grants.

The United States pledged 510 million dollars, including 156 million dollars already given. Pakistan is a key ally in the US "war on terror".

Of the roughly 30 countries that offered help, China pledged 300 million dollars and Iran 200 million dollars.

President Pervez Musharraf said the international community's generosity had shown "that this world is truly a global village". He urged Pakistanis to follow the lead and dig in to help their compatriots.

UN Secretary General Kofi Annan earlier added his voice to Pakistan's call for help, telling about 300 delegates to the conference: "We must ensure the earthquake does not claim more lives than it already has."

It was an "unprecedented disaster, it requires us to mount an unprecedented response," Annan said.

"The pitiless Himalayan winter is almost upon us and growing more and more severe every week. We must sustain our efforts to keep people as healthy and as strong as possible until we can rebuild," he said.

Winter has given the relief operation added urgency, with the United Nations and aid agencies raising alarm that thousands of survivors could die if funding problems disrupt relief operations.

Thousands of tents have been erected for the homeless but they may not provide adequate protection, with winter temperatures regularly falling below freezing point in Muzaffarabad, the main city in the affected area.

Musharraf said the quake, while catastrophic, provided an opportunity for Pakistan and India to resolve their differences over the disputed Kashmir region, and urged New Delhi to work towards peace as its "donation" to the relief effort.

"Let us together solve the Kashmir dispute once for all," he said. "Let this be the Indian donation to Kashmir."

The quake also claimed about 1,300 lives in Indian Kashmir.

The two nuclear rivals have fought two of their three wars over the disputed region, which both control in part but claim in full.

In the wake of the October 8 disaster, they agreed to set aside their differences and open up the five crossing points at the Line of Control that divides the two zones to allow relief supplies through.

Some two dozen Indian Kashmiris traversed the frontier Saturday to find relatives affected by the quake in the first such crossing since the disaster.

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