The
Nobel Peace Prize 2020 was on Friday awarded to the United Nations food agency,
the World Food Program (WFP) for its efforts to combat hunger, the Norwegian
Nobel Committee said.
"The WFP had acted as a driving
force in efforts to prevent the use of hunger as a weapon of war and conflict”,
the committee said in a statement. The UN food agency, just after the
announcement, said it was "deeply humbled". The organization is also
the 101th winner of the Peace price, making the occasion more special.
"This is in recognition of the work of WFP staff who put their lives on
the line every day to bring food and assistance to more than 100 million hungry
children, women and men across the world," the WEO said on Twitter.
The Norwegian Nobel Committee Chairwoman
Berit Reiss-Andersen in a press conference here, said the committee wanted to
"turn the eyes of the world to the millions of people who suffer from or
face the threat of hunger”. The World
Food Program plays a key role in multilateral co-operation in making food
security an instrument of peace. "The coronavirus pandemic has contributed
to a strong upsurge in the number of victims of hunger in the world", the
committee said in a statement. "In the face of the pandemic, the World
Food Program has demonstrated an impressive ability to intensify its
efforts”, it added. In 2019, the WFP provided assistance to close to 100
million people in 88 countries who are victims of acute food insecurity and
hunger. The prize is worth 10m Swedish krona will be presented in Oslo on
December 10. As per the committee, as many as 211 individuals and 107
organizations were nominated for the prize this year. As per the rules,
nomination shortlists are not published for 50 years and any speculation ahead
of the announcement is "sheer guesswork".
The 2019 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, whose peace deal with Eritrea ended a
20-year military stalemate following their 1998-2000 border war. The most
prestigious award is awarded to people "who have conferred the greatest
benefit to humankind". The award was started in accordance with the will
of Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel, with the first award handed out in 1901.