UN chief to travel to Pakistan to see climate catastrophe

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will travel to Pakistan next week following historic deadly flooding to see “the areas most impacted by this unprecedented climate catastrophe”, a UN spokesperson said on Tuesday.

Guterres is expected to arrive in Islamabad on September 9 and return to New York on September 11, UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

Unprecedented flash floods caused by historic monsoon rains have washed away roads, crops, infrastructure and bridges, killing at least 1,100 people in recent weeks and affecting more than 33 million, over 15 per cent of Pakistan’s 220 million population.