Obama pledges Nobel prize money to charity
14 Oct 2009
This year's Nobel peace prize winner, US president Barack Obama, has pledged the prize money to charity. The amount, around $1.4 million, will be donated to charities that are yet to be announced.
White House spokesman Robert Gibbs told reporters that Obama has referred to giving away the prize money to charitable institutions.
While the names of charities are yet unknown, Gibbs said it could be assumed that it will be an assortment of charities.
Obama is scheduled to travel to Oslo and receive the award, which was announced last Friday. (See: Obama wins Peace Prize for good intentions)
"Very rarely has a person to the same extent as Obama captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future," the committee said in its citation.
Reacting to the news of having been awarded the prize, Obama said that the award stood for the hopes of millions around the world.
The award, he said, represented the hopes of people to live in a peaceful world without nuclear weapons, peace in the Middle East, and a world responsive to climate change.
In the acceptance speech, Obama said the award to him was a call to action on issues ranging from nuclear arms, energy resources, and quality of life.
