diff --git a/pkgs/development/libraries/newt/default.nix b/pkgs/development/libraries/newt/default.nix
index 8a4b793cad79..9002d06693e5 100644
--- a/pkgs/development/libraries/newt/default.nix
+++ b/pkgs/development/libraries/newt/default.nix
@@ -17,7 +17,7 @@ stdenv.mkDerivation rec {
   NIX_LDFLAGS = "-lncurses";
 
   crossAttrs = {
-    makeFlags = "CROSS_COMPILE=${stdenv.cross.config}-";
+    makeFlags = "CROSS_COMPILE=${stdenv.cc.prefix}";
   };
 
   meta = with stdenv.lib; {