US President Joe Biden on Wednesday made a fervent call for extending help to Pakistan where floods have caused huge devastation in his speech to the UN General Assembly.

“Pakistan is still under water, needs help,” the president told the 193-member Assembly in its high-level debate, when he dealt with the adverse impacts of climate change.

The iconic hall of the General Assembly was packed-to-capacity with world leaders, including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, when Biden spoke.

The floods have killed over 1,500 people and displaced 30 million as the Pakistan government, with the support of the UN and partners, is racing against time to help the distressed people.

In his address, Biden announced over $2.9 billion in new assistance to address global food insecurity, building on the $6.9 billion in US government assistance to support global food security already committed this year.

The compounding impacts of the pandemic, the deepening climate crisis, rising energy and fertilizer costs, and protracted conflicts – including Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – had disrupted global supply chains and dramatically increased global food prices, he said.

A multi-year drought in the Horn of Africa had created a dire humanitarian emergency, with parts of Somalia at risk of famine for the second time in just over a decade, he added.