The United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said that he’s very shocked to see for himself the drastic impacts of Climate Change in Kiribati particulary in the nation’s capital Tarawa.
“I have been to north and south pole and I have been to other places around the world and my visit to Kiribati is the most shocking. Even a small sea level rise could affect the whole Kiribati”, he said.
Ba Ki-moon made the statement when he paid a visit to “te Bikenikoora”, one of the settlements on Tarawa that has been seriously impacted by sea level rise thus leaving residents of the settlement with no other options but to seek for immediate relocation.
He further added that Climate Change is compromising the ability of people to sustain life.
In his address to the residents of the settlement Ban Ki-moon was frequently asked by threatened villagers as to what would the United Nations do to save Kiribati from sinking under water in 50 to 60 years time as predicted by scientists.
He also urged that people from all walks of life in this globe must come together to deal with the climate change threat.
“As secretary-general, I promise you, I pledge and I will do my best under my power as Secretary-General to fight for you until we achieve the real result”, he promised villagers.
Ban Ki-moon was on a 2-day visit to Kiribati as part of his tour of the Pacific this year.