The world's shortest man who could walk, 27-year-old Khagendra Thapa Magar, has passed away in hospital in Nepal.

He stood at just 67.08 cm tall and was declared the shortest man alive by Guinness World Records (GWR) in 2010 after turning 18.

Mr Magar's brother told news agency AFP that he died of pneumonia at a hospital in Pokhara, some 200 kilometres from Kathmandu, where he lived with his parents.

"He has been in and out of hospital because of pneumonia. But this time his heart was also affected. He passed away today," his brother told AFP.

Mr Magar was made a Nepalese tourism ambassador in 2011.

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"He was so tiny when he was born that he could fit in the palm of your hand, and it was very hard to bathe him because he was so small," Mr Magar's father told GWR.

GWR editor-in-chief, Craig Glenday, who met Mr Magar in 2010, said that "Khagendra certainly didn't let his small size stop him from getting the most out of life".

"It's been an honour to know him and his family, and a privilege to share his story with the world," Mr Glenday said.

Edward "Nino" Hernandez, a DJ from Colombia, is now the world's shortest man at 70.21 cm.