Nepal is the latest country to endure an unprecedented dengue fever outbreak with six deaths and more than 8,000 people hospitalised in the last four months.

The epidemic – believed to be the worst in the nation’s history – has been attributed to climate change and urbanisation creating new breeding grounds for the aedes aegypti and aedes albopictus mosquitoes that spread the disease.

It is one of a wave of outbreaks of the debilitating virus that has spread around the world this year. Bangladesh, the Philippines and Honduras have all sounded national alerts over the disease, which causes debilitating flu-like symptoms including a high fever, headaches and joint pain. In severe cases it can be deadly.

Earlier this year the World Health Organization warned that the disease was one of the top 10 threats to the world's health because of its high burden and potential to spread. It kills 10,000 people a year and infects over 100 million.

Members of the public and opposition politicians have accused the Nepali government of being too slow to react to the current outbreak.

The Nepali Congress demanded Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli declare a national health emergency after his own Minister of Agriculture contracted dengue fever last week.