
UNITED NATIONS – UN leader Ban Ki-moon arrives in Manila Friday for talks with top government leaders and will go to Tacloban on Saturday to assess super typhoon Yolanda damage and ascertain response needs. The United Nations this week launched a $791 million aid appeal to take care of the survivors’ needs over the next 12 months, an amount that UN said will complement the government’s rehabilitation plan. “2013 was another year of extreme weather — as we saw most recently with Typhoon Haiyan. On Thursday, I will depart for Manila and Tacloban for a first-hand assessment of the aftermath,” Ban said Monday as he announced the visit. Ban said he is organizing a major summit on climate change for September 23 next year, just ahead of the UN General Assembly. The UN leader will leave the Philippines on Sunday. Last Wednesday, the Philippines launched an $8.17 billion plan to rebuild the lives of millions made homeless by Super Typhoon Haiyan and strengthen the disaster-prone nation’s defenses against future tempests. The government says that more than 6,000 people died in the November 8 typhoon — one of the strongest storms ever recorded — which badly hit Tacloban and surrounding regions. Almost 1,800 people are still missing. President Benigno Aquino appealed for more foreign aid and private-sector pledges to revive hundreds of devastated communities. “The task immediately before us lies in ensuring that the communities that rise again do so stronger, better and more resilient than before,” he told foreign diplomats Read More …