Obama donates Nobel Peace Prize money

Mar 11, 2010, 21:16 GMT

Washington - US President Barack Obama has donated the 1.4 million dollars that came with winning the Nobel Peace Prize to charity, the White House said Thursday.

Obama divided the money up among 10 charities, with Fisher House, a non-profit that provides housing for families of patients being treated at military and veteran hospital, receiving the most at 250,000 dollars.

The Haiti relief fund set up by former presidents Bill Clinton and George W Bush will receive 200,000 dollars.

The rest of the money will go to the College Summit, Posse Foundation, United Negro College Fund, Hispanic Scholarship Fund, Appalachian Leadership and Education Foundation, American Indian College Fund, AfriCare and the Central Asia Institute.

The Central Asia Institute promotes community based education and literacy in remote regions of Afghanistan and Pakistan, with a special focus on girls.

The Nobel committee awarded Obama the prize in October, pointing to the change of tone in Washington but prompting critics to question the pick less than a year into his presidency.