No turning back on combating climate change: UN chief

United Nations: Asserting that there is no turning back on combating climate change, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has urged world leaders to support and nurture the landmark Paris Agreement.

"Climate action means jobs, growth, cleaner air and better health. Leaders from across the globe and on every front understand this from Fortune 500 CEOs (Chief Executive Officers) to Governors and Mayors," he said in his last press conference as the UN Secretary-General in United Nations on Friday.

He expressed continued support for the global momentum behind the Paris Agreement on climate change.

"The Paris Agreement on climate change is a precious achievement that we must support and nurture. There is no turning back," Ban said.

"Difficult as it may sometimes be, international cooperation remains the path to a more peaceful and prosperous world," he said.

Ban also pledged to continue to spare no effort to urge world leaders, long-standing or newly-minted, to recognise and embrace that pre-eminent 21st-century fact.

During the Paris climate meet in December last, more than 190 nations had agreed on setting ambitious goals for capping global warming and funnelling trillions of dollars to poor countries facing climate catastrophe.

Ban will complete his 10-year service as the world's top diplomat on December 31, passing the baton to his successor Antonio Guterres, who was sworn in this past week.