UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday urged the world to rally in support of Pakistan as he arrived in the country amid catastrophic flooding.
A third of Pakistan was currently under water after massive floods triggered by two months of record monsoon rains left 1,391 people dead and destroyed infrastructure and livelihood for millions.
At least 33 million people have been affected by the unprecedented floods, which most observers say came as a direct result of climate change, and which Pakistani officials say pose an existential threat to the country.
The UN chief is expected to meet Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif before undertaking a visit to the worst-hit province of Sindh, where many cities and towns were still inundated on Friday.
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UN last week launched an emergency global appeal to raise 161 million dollars to fund the immediate response to the catastrophe.
Pakistan’s Finance Ministry estimated that the floods had inflicted damage worth at least 12 billion dollars to the country’s economy, which was already struggling in the face of high fiscal and current account deficits.
“We welcome the visit by the secretary general,’’ Pakistan’s Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb said.
“It will help the world better understand the scale of the devastation.’’
