The World Health Organization WHO has declared the monkey pox outbreak a global health emergency after sounding the agency's highest alert.

The alert is designed to trigger a coordinated international response and could potentially make room for funding to collaborate on sharing vaccines and treatments.

Until the weekend, only the coronavirus and polio have been designated by the WHO as a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC).

The WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has been speaking at a virtual briefing.