MTN wins Grand Prix: Africa's Best Brand, reclaims the #1 spot as the Most Admired Brand in Africa and retains #1 spots as Most Admired and Most Valuable African Brand. Apple is #1 Most Valuable Brand in Africa. Samsung is the #1 Most Admired Non-African Brand

Established brands hold ground in Africa. United States of America leads country of origin table. Nigeria leads Africa

Dangote is Brand Builder of the Year. Econet's Strive Masiyiwa recognized with Lifetime Achievement. Yswara, Konga and Kisua recognized as Emerging African Brands

African Media Agency (AMA)/- Brand Africa has announced that MTN is the overall best brand in Africa and reclaimed the #1 spot as the Most Admired Brand in Africa at a gala launch of the 4th Annual Brand Africa 100: Africa's Best Brands at Sandton Convention Center. For the second year in a row, MTN emerged as the Most Admired and the Most Valuable African brand valued at $4,672mn. Apple, at $128,303mn is the Most Valuable Brand in Africa. Samsung is the #1 Most Admired Non-African Brand.

The Brand Africa 100 shows that established brands in Africa have held their ground.

Apple Named Most Valuable Brand - Non Africa

Non-African brands are a dominant 77% of the Top 100 brands. While African brands have remained relatively

stable at 24%, 25% and 23% in 2013, 2014 and 2015 respectively, the number of non-African countries of origin has steadily diversified from 17 in 2013 to 19 in 2014 to 21 in 2015. Nigeria has over taken South Africa as the leading African nation. The Top 10 countries with the most number of brands on the Top 100 Most Admired Brands are the United States (21%), Nigeria (11%), UK ( 9%), Japan at 8%, France (6%), Netherlands (5%), Germany (4%), Italy (4%), South Africa (4%) and Kenya (4%). African brands remain a negligible 1% share of the value of the Top 100 Most Valuable Brands.

Two thirds (64%) of the Brand Africa 100 list is evenly spread between electronics (16%), apparel (14%), auto manufacturers (13%), telecommunications (11%) and alcoholic beverages (10%).

Over the past three years, 48 brands were common in the tables between 2013 and 2015, 57 between 2013 and 2014 and growing to 66 between 2014 and 2015 - among the Brand Africa 100 Most Admired Brands.

Because of their transformational importance in Africa, Brand Africa also ran a separate survey for the Most Admired Brands in Media and Financial. In the financial services category, Nigeria's First Bank leads the Africa and Barclays the non-African list. In the media category, DSTV leads Africa and BBC the non-African list.

Twelve brands - predominatly non-African - are admired across almost all the 22 sample nations in the survey: Samsung (22/22 countries sampled), Coca Cola, LG and Nokia (21/22), Apple, Toyota and Nike (20/22), Sony and Adidas (19/22) and Mercedes Benz and Puma (18/22). MTN is the most pan-African brand among the Top 100 Most Admired Brands in Africa, operating in 17 and among the Top 10 admired in 7 African countries.

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 Mercedez Benz (+7)

Top 10 Most Admired Brands - African

#1 MTN (South Africa) (+1)

#2 GLO/Globacom (Nigeria) (-6)

#3 Dangote (Nigeria) (+9)

#4 Tusker (Kenya) (-8)

#5 Mukwano (Uganda) (+42)

#6 Simu TV (Tanzania) (-)

#7 Zenith Bank (Nigeria) (-)

#8 Peak Milk (+2)

#9 Sasko (South Africa) (-)

#10 Star Beer (Nigeria) (+40)

( ) Represents numerical change in rank between 2014 and 2015.

Top 10 Most Valuable Brands in Africa

#1 Apple (+23%)

#2 Samsung (+4%)

#3 Google (+12%)

#4 Microsoft (+7%)

#5 Coca Cola (6%)

#6 Toyota (0%)

#7 BMW (+14%)

#8 Mercedez Benz (+13%)

#9 Vodafone/Vodacom (-8%)

#10 Facebook (+146%)

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 percentage change in brand value between 2014 and 2015.

The most admired regional brands are Coca-cola (East Africa), Adidas (West Africa), Nike (North Africa), Samsung (Central Africa), Nike (Southern Africa).

"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," says Thebe Ikalafeng, Founder and Chairman of Brand Africa and Chairman of Brand Finance Africa. "Simultaneously, they are a reflection and celebration of both non-African and African brands that meet the African consumer standard."

"But the time has never been more opportune or urgent for Africa to develop Made in Africa brands. The success of businesses behind these brands will enable Africa to drive its own agenda because they create jobs, contribute tax revenue necessary to fund public goods and help shape the image of Africa as an entrepreneurial and competitive continent."

Brand Africa 100 was developed by pan-African branding and reputation advisory firm, Brand Leadership Group in partnership with Geopoll, the leading mobile survey platform with a database of nearly 200m users in emerging markets, TNS, the globally respected consumer knowledge and information company and Brand Finance, the world's leading independent valuation consultancy.

It is a two-phase process that starts with comprehensive consumer research across Africa to establish the list of the 100 admired Brands and concludes with financial valuation to determine the 100 most valuable brands in Africa.

Geopoll used their sophisticated mobile SMS technology to identify the most admired local and non-local brands in Africa among a representative sample of African countries' consumers in 22 Africans countries which collectively account for 77% of Africa's GDP and 77% of Africa's population, covering the five political regions and all 8 regional economic zones. TNS analyzed the data to create a weighted consumer admiration score that reduced the 9,545 unique brands mentions to the Top 100 Most Admired Brands in Africa. Brand Finance used the royalty relief methodology which is compliant with International Valuation Standards Authority as a basis for determining the fair market value of brands to establish the Top 100 Most Valuable Brands.

"Given the deep mobile penetration in Africa, the mobile methodology is the most cost-effective and expedient way to reach a wider sample and higher penetration across Africa," says Cathy Vonderhaar, Vice President - Geopoll.

"With such diverse populations between countries and regions, the weighted index ensured the results are representative of the population within each country and Africa overall to reflect a unique ranking of the Top 100 Most Admired Brands in Africa," added Karin Du Chenne, Regional Development Director - TNS Africa Mediterranean Middle East (AMME).

"It is time brands in Africa are recognised for the value they create for the African continent, embracing and leveraging African values," concluded Oliver Schmitz, Managing Director - Brand Finance Africa.

Brand Africa closed the awards with a Grand Prix to MTN as Africa's Best Brand, a Lifetime Achievement award to Econet Wireless Founder and Chairman, Strive Masiyiwa, in recognition of leadership excellence, inspiration and service to Africa, Brand Builder of the Year to Dangote in recognition of leadership and excellence in building successful brands in Africa, and Emerging African Brand awards to Kisua (Ghana/South Africa), Yswara (Ivory Coast/South Africa) and Konga (Nigeria) in recognition of extraordinary entrepreneurship and excellence in building rising African brands.

The Brand Africa 100® results are published in an African Business Brand Africa supplement in African Business magazine on sale globally in November 2015, online by Mail&Guardian Africa post the awards, and broadcast on CNBC Africa in an awards highlights special.

The Gala was hosted by Brand South Africa and supported by Brand Finance, TNS, Geopoll, Brand Leadership Group, African Business, CNBC Africa, M&G Africa, African Media Agency, SA Mint, Blue Media, Project Fable and Fresh RSVP.

Simphiwe Dana, a multi-platinum-selling award-winning South African Afro-Jazz-Soul singer and songwriter and Congolese-born TRESOR, a multi platinum selling DRC born singer-songwriter entertained the guest, who will be feasting on the pan-African culinary delights of award-winning and international culinary star and Foodnetwork host, Siba Mtongana.

Distributed by African Media Agency (AMA) on behalf of Brand Africa.

BRAND AFRICA

Brand Africa is a brand-led outcomes-driven pan-African intergenerational movement to inspire a great Africa through creating a positive image of Africa, celebrating its diversity and driving its competitiveness.

Brand Africa mobilises African and disapora decision makers, thought leaders, influencers and future leaders to engage with, shape and drive an African agenda catalytic for creating an enabling environment for driving Africa's growth, reputation, competitiveness and unity.

Brand Africa governance is structured around global principles of corporate governance that ensures independent oversight, transparency, accountability and representivity. Brand Africa has an active global African network of Patrons, Trustees, Ambassadors, Counsels (for Academia, Branding, Youth, Media and Investment), National Partners, International Partnes and Africa Champions who shape and champion the Brand Africa agenda globally.

Brand Africa is an independent Non-Profit Organisation registered in the Republic of South Africa (NPC 2013/146300/08) and a signatory to the Independent Code of Governance for Non-Profit Organisations in Africa (www.governance.org.za).

BA 100 PARTNERS

About Brand Leadership

Brand Leadership is a pan-African brand development, activation and measurement firm and a strategic partner for global and African decision-makers and brand builders interested in and/or invested in Africa. Established in 2002, Brand Leadership has over the years delivered brand-led solutions that respond to African conditions, needs and ambitions for over 100 African and non-African brands in Africa across diverse industries and markets in the private and public sectors. www.brandleadership.com.

About TNS

TNS advises clients on specific growth strategies around new market entry, innovation, brand switching and stakeholder management, based on long -established expertise and market -leading solutions. With a presence over 80 countries, TNS has more conversations with the world's consumers than anyone else and understands individual human behaviour and attitudes across cultural, economic and political regions of the world. TNS is part of Kantar, one of the world's largest insight, information and consultancy groups, with 28,500 employees across 100 countries encompassing the whole spectrum of research and consultancy disciplines, enabling the group to offer clients business insights at each and every point of the consumer cycle. www.tnsglobal.com

About Geopoll

GeoPoll is the world's largest mobile survey platform, with a network of 200 million users in Africa and Asia. By asking people questions on their mobile phones without the need for data plans or internet access, GeoPoll is able to help customers understand trends, preferences, and conditions in countries where data has traditionally been difficult and expensive to obtain.

Through their relationships with Mobile Network Operators, GeoPoll connects researchers directly to their audiences, making it faster and more cost effective than any other method of data collection. GeoPoll's multi-modal platform administers remote surveys through SMS, voice, or mobile web, and delivers results in near real-time, giving anyone the ability to make data-driven decisions.

GeoPoll works with Fortune 500 companies, non-profit organisations, and governments to provide insights on everything from food security to brand preference. Their services include both custom research and subscription data products which deliver daily data on media measurement, fast-moving-consumer-goods tracking, and more.

GeoPoll is a division of Mobile Accord, a mobile platform company powering communication for social good. Mobile Accord's products and services empower major non-profit, organizations, universities and government entities to benefit from the power of mobile technology. www.geopoll.com

About African Business

African Business is the bestselling pan-African business magazine with an award-winning team widely respected for its editorial excellence. It provides the all-important tools enabling decision makers to maintain a critical edge in a continent that is changing the world. African Business special reports profile a wide range of sectors and industries including transport, energy, mining, construction, aviation and agriculture. www.africanbusinessmagazine.com

About Africa Media Agency

AMA - African Media Agency specializes in helping companies grow their share of voice on a pan-African scale. Its deep knowledge and understanding of the continent helped AMA gain recognition and act as an authoritative source of news for the most influential media houses in every African country. Its offices are located in Dubai (UAE), Libreville (Gabon), New York (USA) and with local presence in Johannesburg (South Africa), Nairobi (Kenya) and Lagos (Nigeria). AMA intimately understands the diversified and often complex business environment in each African country and guides its clients with best practice on every step of their African journey. www.amediaagency.com

About Brand Finance

Brand Finance is the world's leading brand valuation consultancy. Brand Finance advises strongly branded organisations on how to maximise their value through the effective management of their brands and intangible assets. Brand Finance has conducted thousands of brand valuations for clients of all sizes and across most sectors. Brand Finance's clients include international brand owners, tax authorities, lawyers, government bodies and investment banks. Brand Finance publishes Global 500 - the world's most valuable brands and Global Nation Brands 100 - the most valuable nation brands leagues as well as regional tables in all regions annually. www.brandfinance.com

About Mail & Guardian Africa

M&G Africa was launched on May 8 2014 as one of Africa's most ambitious digital Pan-African news channels. It brings deeper understanding to Africa's possibilities and difficulties today, challenges conventional views, explores the future of the continent, and uses new tools to give voice to perspectives that both Afro-optimists and Afro-pessimists don't want you to hear. It is edited by Ugandan editor Charles Onyango-Obbo. Headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya, M&G Africa is published by M&G Media, South Africa. www.mgafrica.com

About Brand South Africa

Brand South Africa was established in August 2002 to help create a positive and compelling brand image for South Africa.

At that time, the world was unsure about what to think of South Africa, with many different messages being sent out by various sources. This did very little to build the country's brand and it was evident that to attract tourism and investment there was a need to co-ordinate marketing initiatives to make them more effective.

This led to the creation of Brand South Africa, whose main objective is the marketing of South Africa through the Brand South Africa campaign.

There are many benefits to having a consolidated brand image, with the most important being that a consistent Brand South Africa message creates strategic advantages in terms of trade and tourism for the country in an increasingly competitive marketplace.

VISION

To be the authority on national identity and reputation building for the benefit of South Africa and the continent.

MISSION

To build confidence in the future of the nation by telling our inspiring South African story.

PURPOSE

Ensure a sustainable future for our children.

STRATEGIC POSITIONING

Inspire and unify civil society, business, government and the media to build the reputation of South Africa, and contribute to its global competitiveness.