“This year’s Peace Prize gives a clear message to the world that education is absolutely vital in the fight against poverty and is an important preventive measure in the battle against extremism,” said President of the Storting Olemic Thommessen.

“It also gives a powerful signal that child labour is an evil that deprives children of their right to a childhood and a decent life,” said Thommessen.

The President of the Storting met Malala Yousafzai in the course of her visit to Oslo in June of this year. During this meeting, Ms Yosafzai stressed the tremendous and terrible challenges facing children in the Swat valley in Pakistan.

“This year’s prize gives a voice to all the children and young people in the world who are deprived of their basic human rights. Through the fight against child labour and through the battle for the right of children and young people to have an education, Kailash Satyarthi and Malala Yousafzai have placed children’s rights high on the agenda in India and Pakistan. Not only that, the award also has great symbolic value by uniting the fight for children and young people’s rights across religions, cultures and national boundaries,” Thommessen added.