UN secretary-general Kofi Annan and former US president George H. W. Bush, special envoy of the secretary-general for the South Asia earthquake, Oct. 6, 2006

Former U.S. President George H.W. Bush has urged the international community to give nearly $100 million to help victims of last year's devastating South Asia earthquake.

Mr. Bush, the U.N. special envoy for the recovery effort, made the appeal at a news conference Friday to mark the first anniversary of the huge quake that struck Pakistan and India. More than 80,000 people were killed and more than three million left homeless by the quake.

Mr. Bush said many of the quake's victims still lack access to such basic services as clean water, sanitation and housing.

The former U.S. president says the early recovery plan for quake-affected areas has received just two-thirds of the $255 million needed.

He said that although many people have returned home from makeshift tent camps, full-scale reconstruction and the full resumption of basic services will take years.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP, AP and Reuters.