Greta Thunberg gives $100,000 in prize money to UN children's charity to help coronavirus battle

Greta Thunberg has donated $100,000 in prize money to the United Nations children's fund to help its coronavirus support campaign.

The teenage environmental activist described the coronavirus pandemic as "a child-rights crisis" and compared its seriousness to climate change.

The money was originally given to Ms Thunberg by Danish charity Human Act as a prize for her work.

Ms Thunberg gave the money to UNICEF, while Human Act gave the children's fund $100,000 more.

Greta Thunberg speaking to the European Parliament (AFP via Getty Images)

UNICEF will use the money to buy soap, masks, gloves and other protective equipment to support the work of global healthcare systems fighting Covid-19, it said in a statement.

Children are at risk of being the biggest indirects victims of Covid-19, even though they seem to be less affected than other age groups by the symptoms themselves, a UN report has found.

Children's education is affected by school closures, while more child deaths in countries with struggling healthcare systems are expected.

Children are also more at risk from domestic violence and other abuse while kept at home, the UN reported.

And up to 66 million children across the world could fall into poverty as households incomes fall from lost jobs in lockdown.

Health officials in Jumla District collecting throat swabs from people in quarantine and those in contact with them as part of a mass contact tracing effort by the government, with monitoring and technical support from UNICEF and other partners (UNICEF)

Ms Thunberg added in a video statement: "It is always the poorest and most vulnerable people who will suffer the most from a crisis whether it is the climate crisis or the corona crisis and even though children may not seem to be the primary target group for the corona crisis, children’s lives are still at risk...

"We must now all act together to protect the children and end the devastating consequences of the coronavirus. Children are the future and they must be protected.

UNICEF executive director Henrietta Fore praised Ms Thunberg and added: “The coronavirus pandemic is the greatest struggle the world has seen in generations.

“Children and young people are among the most severely impacted by the knock-on effects of Covid-19, so it is only natural that they would want to do something about it.

Ms Thunberg first came to prominence because of her school strikes to raise awareness of climate change.

Since then she has become a global leader on the subject and has spoken to the UN, European Parliament and UK Parliament.

Ms Thunberg has taken her climate strikes online amid coronavirus lockdowns.