MTN has emerged as the Most Admired and the Most Valuable African brand, valued at US$ 4.672 billion.
Brand Africa announced this at the 4th Annual Brand Africa 100 Best African Brands gala event.
This is the second time MTN Group has won this award in two years.
As overall best brand on the continent, MTN also reclaims the number one spot as the Most Admired Brand in Africa.
MTN is the most pan-African brand among the Top 100 Most Admired Brands in Africa, operating in 17 countries and among the Top 10 admired in 7 African countries.
A statement from MTN quoted Group Chief Consumer Officer, Albert Fernandez as saying “we are humbled by the recognition, and dedicate this award to our employees and customers, who continue to make MTN the best brand in our markets. For us, this award is recognition of our unwavering commitment to make a positive change and brighten the lives of our customers and many others in the communities where we operate.”
Founder and Chairman of Brand Africa and Chairman of Brand Finance Africa, Thebe Ikalafeng was also quoted as saying “one again MTN has proven to be the standard by which to measure how to build a pan-African brand. They have established a rapport with the African consumer that is the foundation for long-term success built on a quality brand, great campaigns and a singular promised delivered. They are authentically the Grand Prix of world-class African brands – Africa’s Best Brand,”
“These rankings are increasingly significant as they are an important metric of the progress Africa is making in creating brands and services that respond to African conditions, needs and ambitions. Simultaneously, they are a reflection and celebration of both non-African and African brands that meet the African consumer standard,” he added.
The Brand Africa 100 shows that established brands in Africa have held their ground because non-African brands are a dominant 77% of the top 100 brands this year, have grown from 75% last year.
Two thirds (64%) of the Brand Africa 100 list is evenly spread between electronics, while apparel accounted for 14%, auto manufacturers 13%, telecommunications 11%, and alcoholic beverages 10%.
Below is the list of top 10 best African brands and top 10 most admired brands.
Top 10 Most Admired Brands in Africa
#1 MTN (South Africa) (+1)
#2 Samsung (+1)
#3 Coca Cola (-2)
#4 Nike (+6)
#5 Adidas (+2)
#6 Nokia (-2)
#7 Airtel (+4)
#8 Toyota (-3)
#9 LG (0)
#10 Mercedes Benz (+7)
Top 10 Most Valuable Brands – African
#1 MTN (-13%)
#2 DSTV/GoTV/Multichoice (2%)
#3 Safaricom/Mpesa (4%)
#4 Dangote (22%)
#5 Tusker (14%)
#6 Glo/Globacom (-3%)
#7 Zenith Bank (35%)
#8 Golden Penny Foods (-)
#9 Orijin (-)
#10 Star Beer (-).
( ) Represents numerical change in rank between 2014 and 2015.
In recent years, MTN has won a number of brand awards. These include the only African brand in the 2014 BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brand ranking, the only South African company on the World Champions list and the Most Admired and Most Valuable Brand in Africa, in the 2014 Brand Africa 100 ranking of the most admired and most valuable brands in Sub-Saharan Africa.