DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – The son of a Nigerian farm laborer who rose out of poverty to earn graduate degrees in agricultural economics and spent his career improving the availability of seed, fertilizer and financing for African farmers is this year’s World Food Prize winner.

Akinwumi Adesina, president of African Development Bank, says the future of global food security relies on making farming in Africa a profitable business to help move farmers out of poverty. An official announcement for the $250,000 World Food Prize was expected in a ceremony Monday at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington. Adesina will receive the prize Oct. 19 at the Iowa Capitol.

The prize was created by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Norman Borlaug in 1986 to recognize scientists and others who have improved food quality and availability.