The United Nations has decided to temporarily relocate non-essential staff in Myanmar's Rakhine state, where tension remains high amid unrest that has killed seven.

A UN statement said it has decided to temporarily relocate, on a voluntary basis, non-essential international and national UN staff, affiliated organisations and their families.

It said serious disturbances and the imposition of a state of emergency prompted the move, which is being implemented on a voluntary basis.

Violence flared in Rakhine state after the murder of a Buddhist woman last month, followed by an attack on a bus carrying Muslims.

Rakhine state is named after the ethnic Rakhine Buddhist majority, but also has a sizeable Muslim population, including the Rohingya minority.