The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the mpox outbreak in parts of Africa a public health emergency of international concern.

The highly contagious disease - formerly known as monkeypox - has killed at least 450 people during an initial outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

It has now spread across parts of central and east Africa, and scientists are concerned about how fast a new variant of the disease is spreading and its high fatality rate.

There have been more than 14,000 cases and 524 deaths in Africa this year, which already exceed last year’s figures.

“The potential for further spread within Africa and beyond is very worrying,” WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said.

Mpox is transmitted through close contact, and talking or breathing close to another person.

It causes flu-like symptoms, skin lesions and can be fatal, with four in 100 cases leading to death.