Two distinguished African women scientists — Professor Mary Abukutsa Onyango of Kenya and Dr. Mercy Diebiru-Ojo of Nigeria — have been named joint winners of the 2025 Africa Food Prize, the continent’s highest honor for innovation and leadership in agriculture and food systems.
Announced at the Africa Food Systems Forum in Dakar, Senegal, the award celebrates individuals reshaping Africa’s agriculture from subsistence to success. The laureates, recognized for their transformative work in indigenous vegetables and root crop seed systems, will share the US$100,000 prize.
Professor Mary Abukutsa Onyango, a horticultural scientist at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), has spent over three decades advancing research on African indigenous vegetables such as amaranth, spider plant, and African nightshade. Her work has repositioned these crops from “poor man’s food” to globally recognized nutrient-rich superfoods, influencing nutrition policies and opening new market opportunities for smallholder farmers.
“This award belongs to the countless farmers, students, and scientists who have kept indigenous knowledge alive and adapted it to modern needs,” she said. “My vision is that every African household can access diverse, nutritious food grown from our own biodiversity.”
From Nigeria, Dr. Mercy Diebiru-Ojo, founder of GoSeed Ltd and Vegetative Seed Specialist at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), was honored for her groundbreaking leadership in cassava and yam seed systems. She adapted and commercialized Semi-Autotrophic Hydroponic (SAH) technology, enabling the mass production of disease-free, high-quality planting materials that have doubled crop yields and strengthened value chains across West Africa.
“I feel so blessed and grateful to be recognized for the work we are doing to transform root crop systems,” Dr. Diebiru-Ojo said. “It’s encouraging that both laureates this year are women — proof that women are playing a significant role in shaping Africa’s agricultural transformation.”
Both laureates embody the spirit of innovation, entrepreneurship, and scientific excellence driving Africa’s agricultural transformation. Their work demonstrates how home-grown research and enterprise can secure food security, build resilience, and empower farming communities.
Former Tanzanian President H.E. Dr. Jakaya Mrisho Kikwete, Chair of the Africa Food Prize Committee, commended the winners, noting that they “embody the very best of African innovation” and have “proven that the future of food systems lies in the knowledge and technologies rooted in Africa’s own diversity.”
Established in 2005 as the Yara Prize and renamed the Africa Food Prize in 2016, the award continues to celebrate bold initiatives that improve food security and agricultural sustainability across the continent.
This year’s recognition sends a powerful message — Africa’s food future depends not only on scientific innovation but also on empowering local communities and elevating indigenous crops as engines of nutrition and growth.
Source: Farm Radio International
