(BSS/AFP) - Ghana has recorded its first death from Mpox, health authorities confirmed Sunday, amid a sharp rise in new infections in the West African country.

Twenty-three new cases have been confirmed in the past week, bringing the total number of infections to 257 since the virus was first detected in Ghana in June 2022.

The latest figure marks the highest weekly increase since the outbreak began and the first fatality recorded in the country.

Health minister Kwabena Mintah Akandoh told AFP "that the situation is under control."

"The key to limiting this outbreak is early detection and responsible behaviour," Akandoh said.

Mpox, previously known as Monkeypox, is a viral infection related to smallpox, causing fever, body aches and distinct skin lesions and can be deadly.

The disease spreads through close physical contact with infected individuals or contaminated materials.

A Ghanaian government agency responsible for public health is expected to receive vaccines from the World Health Organization this week.

"Our at-risk populations have already been identified, and we are ready to roll out vaccination as soon as doses arrive," a director with the service, Franklyn Asiedu-Bekoe, told AFP.

The outbreak in Ghana mirrors a broader trend across West Africa, where health officials are struggling to contain the disease.

Thousands of cases have been recorded this year in the region, with Sierra Leone registering a total of 3,350 cases, including 16 deaths - from January to late May of this year.

Elsewhere thousands more cases have also been detected this year across DR Congo, Uganda and Burundi, according to WHO.

Africa CDC figures released last week show over 47,000 confirmed cases and 221 deaths reported across the continent since January last year.

At least 27,000 of those cases were recorded this year alone.

Last month WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the virus remains an international health emergency amid the rise in West African cases.