Dr. Maria Andrade is a Cape Verdean scientist who has spent over two decades in Mozambique revolutionizing the role of the sweetpotato in African agriculture. Known as "Senhora Polpa Alaranjada" (the Orange Flesh Lady), she has been a driving force behind the development and distribution of orange-fleshed sweetpotatoes (OFSP).Working with the International Potato Center (CIP), Dr. Andrade has released 30 biofortified varieties, 20 of which are specifically bred to be drought-tolerant. Her "accelerated breeding scheme" halved the time required to develop new varieties from eight years to four, allowing for a faster response to food insecurity. By using an "integrated approach" that includes nutrition education and creative marketing—such as "orange brand" campaigns with songs and colorful clothing—she helped reach over four million people.In 2016, she was a co-recipient of the World Food Prize for her success in using biofortification to combat Vitamin A deficiency. Her work has fundamentally shifted the sweetpotato from a "crop of the poor" to a vital tool for public health and climate resilience across sub-Saharan Africa.