The 2011 Nobel Peace Prize was jointly awarded to three female political activists.

Two African and one Asian female were awarded for their persistence in obtaining equal rights for women.

[1] In announcing the award on 7 October 2011, the chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Thorbjørn Jagland, stressed the link between women's rights, peace and democracy.

There were 241 nominations for the 2011 award, which included the European Union, WikiLeaks and individuals connected with the Arab Spring such as Israa Abdel Fattah and Wael Ghonim.

[2] The five members of the Nobel Committee are appointed by the Norwegian Parliament to roughly reflect the party makeup of that body.