ISLAMABAD: Karachi is among the nine densely-built mega cities in Asia and the Pacific region, which are particularly vulnerable, and are projected to become substantially hotter in the years ahead, United Nations report titled ‘Asia-Pacific Disaster Report 2025’, reveals on Wednesday.

Urban areas are already at high-risk for extreme heat due to the urban heat island effect. Densely built surfaces trap heat and raise city temperatures above those of surrounding rural areas.

This challenge is being exacerbated by rapid and often unplanned urbanisation, coupled with insufficient green spaces, the report adds.

Seoul, Tokyo, Beijing, Delhi, Karachi, Dhaka, Manila, Jakarta and Phnom Penh are vulnerable, with temperatures expected to rise 2°C-7°C above global warming.

Densely built surfaces trap heat while rapid urbanisation and shrinking green spaces raise city temperatures

“As access to cooling, water and healthcare come under increased strain, children, the elderly and outdoor low-wage earners in poor and densely populated urban areas are disproportionately affected.”

Higher-income areas usually lie in cooler, greener neighbourhoods, exacerbating issues of equity and environmental justice, the report says.

For the period 2041-2060, the Asia-Pacific countries projected to be most arid are: Mongolia, Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Iran and Turkmenistan.

The report says that extreme heat is reshaping the region’s disaster landscape and driving the fastest growing climate-related hazards.

The report shows that rising temperatures are “impacting all, everywhere”, with expanding and intensifying risks to food systems, public health, urban living, rural livelihoods, infrastructure and ecosystem.

The report released by the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UN-ESCAP) warns that across Asia and the Pacific region, the increase in the frequency and intensity of extreme heat events are now creating a silent but growing health emergency. “Under all future climate scenarios, heat stress is projected to rise sharply across the region with mortality potentially doubling by 2050.”

The report says the rising threat of extreme heat demands a new level of urgency. “Every country needs to act now, with implementation of regional cooperation initiatives turbocharged to meet the scale of this evolving disaster risk landscape.”

Published in Dawn, November 27th, 2025