A Sierra Leone chef is the first African to win the Basque Culinary World Prize

A Sierra Leone-born chef is this year’s winner of the Basque Culinary World Prize (BCWP), and the first African to bag the $105,000 prize.

Fatmata Binta, based in Ghana, beat 1,000 nominees to emerge as the world’s top chef for showcasing sustainable nomadic culinary culture and exploring the diaspora of West African cuisine through her innovative ‘Dine on a Mat’ pop-up initiative.

“It feels great and humbling,” Binta told Quartz. “It is also a reminder to women that they can achieve anything, [no] matter their background and ethnicity. This prize is going to change lives.”

Read the rest of this story on qz.com. Become a member to get unlimited access to Quartz’s journalism.