Pamela Afokpe Wins 2026 Borlaug Field Research Award
The R&D manager receives the honor for her pioneering work in developing and commercializing African indigenous vegetables.
Updated on Oct. 20, 2026 in Botany
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Should your community prioritize growing indigenous crops to improve local food security?
The World Food Prize Foundation awarded Pamela Afokpe the 2026 Norman Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application. The recognition highlights her efforts to transform indigenous crops into commercial opportunities for smallholder farmers across West Africa.
Why it matters
Afokpe work aims to improve food security and economic stability by modernizing the cultivation of traditional African vegetables. Her methods bridge the gap between scientific research and practical application for local growers.
Afokpe collected over 2,000 regional crop accessions and developed the Sika Gboma variety, which provides intermediate tolerance to Bacterial Wilt. This variety helped reach a production equivalent of 3,000 tons of produce over three years.
The players
Pamela Afokpe
She is an R&D Operations Manager at East-West Seed West Africa who specializes in the development of indigenous vegetable crops.
World Food Prize Foundation
This organization promotes the quality, quantity, and availability of food by recognizing individuals who have significantly advanced human development.
Rockefeller Foundation
This philanthropic organization endows the Norman Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application to support agricultural innovation.
East-West Seed West Africa
This company focuses on breeding and distributing vegetable seeds specifically adapted to the tropical climates of West Africa.
Simon N. Groot
He is a prominent figure in the agricultural sector who received the World Food Prize in 2019 for his work in seed development.
The details
By replacing traditional seed broadcasting with precise nursery management, Afokpe lowered farmer input costs and demonstrated commercial viability through open-air shelf-life testing. Her research platform, established in a field in 2017, focuses on making high-performing indigenous vegetables a reliable source of income for rural communities.
Timeline
In 2017, Afokpe established a regional research platform in a field.
Simon N. Groot received the World Food Prize in 2019.
Afokpe earned the Platinum Helix R&D Award in 2025.
Pamela Afokpe won the 2026 Borlaug Field Award on October 20, 2026.
The Big Picture
The recognition of Afokpe by the Norman Borlaug Award for Field Research and Application continues the discipline's trend of prioritizing localized crop resilience. This shift moves the focus from generic staple crops toward specialized, indigenous varieties that thrive under specific regional environmental pressures.
The refinement of indigenous vegetable production techniques could stabilize supply chains for traditional crops and improve the quality of produce available in local markets. These agricultural advancements may lead to more consistent food supplies and higher profitability for small-scale growers in the region.
The takeaway
Recognizing field-level research highlights the essential role that local knowledge plays in global food security efforts. Readers can support sustainable agriculture by prioritizing the consumption of regionally adapted, indigenous crop varieties.
Further reading
Learn more about advancements in plant science and cultivation by visiting our Botany section.
Live Poll
Should your community prioritize growing indigenous crops to improve local food security?
