OPCW won 2013 Nobel Peace Prize

The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) on 11 October 2013 won the Nobel Peace Prize for the year 2013 for its extensive efforts to eliminate chemical weapons.

The award was announced by Nobel Committee chairman Thorbjoern Jagland in Oslo, the capital city of Norway.
 
About the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW)

• The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is an independent, international body set up in 1997 to implement the Chemical Weapons Convention.

• The organisation is presently involved in destroying Syria's stockpiles of chemical weapons - the first time the OPCW has worked in a war zone.

• It carries out inspections of destruction procedures, as well as evaluating members' own declarations, in order to verify that the convention is being adhered to.

• It is based in The Hague, Netherland and has 189 member states, covering around 98 percent of the world's population. These member nations have agreed to work together to create a world free from chemical weapons.

• The OPCW employs around 500 people and has a budget of 75m Euros (102m Dollars, 63m Pounds) in 2010.

•It is an autonomous organisation with a working relationship with the United Nations.

• Ahmet Uzumcu  is the  Present Director-General of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons.

The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to 125 Nobel Laureates since 1901. The 1.25 million Dollar prize will be presented to OPCW at Oslo on 10 December 2013.

The Nobel Peace Prize 2012 was awarded to European Union (EU) "for over six decades contributed to the advancement of peace and reconciliation, democracy and human rights in Europe".

The Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded 94 times to 125 Nobel Laureates between 1901 and 2013, 100 individuals and 25 organizations.

Facts about Noble  Peace Prize

• 94 Nobel Peace Prizes have been awarded 1901-2013.

• 2 Peace Prizes have been divided between three persons.

• 15 women have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize so far.

• 62 is the average age of the Nobel Peace Prize Laureates the year they were awarded the prize.

• 1 Peace Prize Laureate, Le Duc Tho, has declined the Nobel Peace Prize.

• 3 Peace Prize Laureates have been under arrest at the time of the award: German pacifist and journalist Carl von Ossietzky, Burmese politician Aung San Suu Kyi and Chinese human rights activist Liu Xiaobo.