The United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres says the world can effectively fight climate change.

Other than collective action, there is a need to ramp up efforts and political will to ensure that there is a global action plan being implemented.

The UNSG says the Pacific is making a number of strides in the global fight and is an example for the rest of the world, despite being at the frontline of the effects of climate change.

“The message of the Pacific is not to say, well look at us, we are in trouble, it is to say clearly we are determined to address the challenge of climate change but it’s not only the Pacific that should state, it’s the whole planet that should state and even the most developed countries in the world will face dramatic impacts of climate change.”

The UNSG says it’s become more than apparent how much of the world is already having to address climate change impacts.

“We see today devastating storms, including recently in the United States of America, we see today droughts progressing in Africa in a way that becomes a terrible threat not only for the African continent but of the Mediterranean and even European continent.  We see already today, heatwaves killing people in Northern Europe in large numbers, we see already today glaciers receding.”

The head of the UN will in September hold a climate action summit that’s expected to be a game changer on the global action plan on climate change.