Nobel Peace Prize to be announced

The list of candidates is a closely guarded secret

The winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, one of the world's highest accolades, is to be announced in Oslo on Friday.

The names tipped as potential winners of the 2009 prize include Zimbabwe's prime minister and a Chinese dissident.

Norway's NRK television, which often correctly guesses the prize-winner, focused on Morgan Tsvangirai in its Thursday evening broadcast.

The laureate - chosen by a five-member committee - wins a gold medal, a diploma and 10m Swedish kronor ($1.4m).

NRK predicted that this year the winner would be an individual rather than an organisation, from among a record 205 candidates.

Those reportedly on the list include Chinese dissident Hu Jia and Colombian peace-broker Piedad Cordoba.

KEY RECENT WINNERS 2008: Martti Ahtisaari 2007: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, Al Gore 2002: Jimmy Carter 2001: UN, Kofi Annan 1994: Yasser Arafat, Shimon Peres, Yitzhak Rabin 1993: Nelson Mandela, FW de Klerk 1991: Aung San Suu Kyi 1990: Mikhail Gorbachev 1989: Dalai Lama

French-Colombian activist and former hostage Ingrid Betancourt, rescued last year after five years in captivity, is also reportedly being considered for the honour.

Other possible candidates mentioned include US President Barack Obama, Afghan rights activist Sima Samar and Jordanian interfaith dialogue advocate Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad.

Norway resumed aid to Zimbabwe this year after freezing funds since 2000. Mr Tsvangirai also visited the country in June.

Last year, the Nobel committee awarded the prize to former Finnish President Martti Ahtisaari for his work to resolve conflict over three decades.

The prize-winner formally receives the award in Oslo on 10 December, the anniversary of the death in 1896 of the awards' founder, Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel.