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Dangote, MTN, GTBank Emerge Most Admired African Brands

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For the third time in a row, Dangote Group has emerged as the most admired African brand, of African continent origin, by consumers, paired with the telecommunication giant, MTN in a survey of 100 Africa best brands announced in a novel global virtual event that incorporated the market openings of Kenya, South Africa, and Nigeria.

GTBank returns to the top spot in financial services and the United Kingdom’s BBC retains its media category ranking as the most admired media brand in separate category sub-surveys of the most admired financial services and media brands in Africa. African brands only occupy 13 of the 100 entries, seven less from last year.

Established 10 years ago, to coincide with the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the world’s biggest single sporting event, the Brand Africa 100: Africa’s Best Brands survey and rankings have established themselves as the most authoritative survey, analysis, and metric of brands in Africa.

African brands only occupied 13 of the 100 entries, 7 less from last year’s. Founder and Chairman of Brand Africa and Brand Leadership, Thebe Ikalafeng during an online interactive session via Zoom said: “African brands have an important role in helping to build the image, competitiveness and transforming the continent’s promise into a real change. It’s concerning that in the 10 years since the triumphant FIFA World Cup in South Africa which globally highlighted the promise and capability of Africa, and despite the vibrant entrepreneurial environment, Africa is not creating more competitive brands to meet the needs of its growing consumer market.” Global Client Development Manager, GeoPoll, Caitlin van Niekerk said: “The reach and accessibility of mobile across the continent enabled us to survey respondents across a representative sample of countries quickly and effectively, giving us vital and timely results at a critical time. Kantar has been the insight lead for Brand Africa since inception in 2010.”

It is a consumer-led survey that seeks to establish brand preferences across Africa. The survey is conducted among a representative sample of respondents 18 years and older, in 27 countries which collectively represent 50 percent of the continent, covering all economic regions and accounting for an estimated 80 percent of the population and the GDP of Africa. The 2020 survey was conducted between February and April 2020 and yielded over 15,000 brand mentions and over 2,000 unique brands

Out of the top 100 brands in 2010/11, only half still appear in this year’s list due to mergers, acquisitions, and the obsolescence of many brands. The most prominent changes are in the technology category with the demise Blackberry (#32 in 2010/11), the consolidation of Vodafone (#54 in 2010/11 and now #13 in 2020) which acquired Vodacom in 2008 and re-branded in 2011, Etisalat (#40 in 2010/11) re-branding to 9 Mobile in 2017 and Motorola (#39) being acquired by Lenovo in 2014. A Chinese brand, Tecno, has raced up the ranking from #33 to #5 in the rankings – a dominant performance for one of China’s premier global brands that are not even sold in China

In his reaction, Group Chief Corporate Communication Officer of the Dangote Group, Anthony Chiejina said the management was not unexpected of the ranking because the company has a long-standing reputation for quality, relevance compliance, and social stewardship. “Our mission and vision engage and inspire us to buy extension connect us to with both our internal and external stakeholders.

“We fervently believe that only Africans can develop Africa, and this gives us a stronger sense of relevance in all the countries where we have our operations. we are touching lives by providing their basic needs and empowering Africans more than ever before creating jobs reducing capital flight, helping government conserve foreign exchange drain by supporting different industrial infrastructural projects of African government.”

Mr. Chiejina stated further that Dangote Cement has been producing high quality and affordable cement, reducing poverty, engaging in unprecedented philanthropy, and above all respecting the laws of the land where we operate. “All these are our credo and we do not compromise it, it is our way. And the ranking is just an acknowledgment of all these by our stakeholders, We keep our brand promise and stay authentic,” he concluded

BIG STORY

Stop Making One-Term Commitments, Nobody Believes You — El-Rufai To Obi, Amaechi

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Nasir el-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna State, has called out Peter Obi and Rotimi Amaechi for pledging to serve only one term if elected president, arguing that such promises are dubious and not credible. He made his remarks on Sunday Politics, a Channels Television program.

Obi, the Labour Party’s 2023 presidential contender, has consistently stated that four years is sufficient to reset the nation, even stating that “purposeful leadership is not defined by how long one stays in office, but by the impact made.” Amaechi, too, has offered to serve for a single term under the African Democratic Congress (ADC), suggesting rotation could benefit political stability.

In response, el-Rufai countered: “I don’t think anyone believes [one-term promises]. You should not constitutionally give up what is yours. And frankly, as someone who has been governor for eight years—and Amaechi and Peter Obi have both been governors—they know the time it takes to make meaningful change in government. Four years is not enough.”

He continued: “So, I want to appeal to everyone to stop making these commitments of ‘I will do four years’ or ‘I will do eight years’, because nobody believes you.”

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BIG STORY

Sextape-Tainted Equatorial Guinea Official, Baltasar Engonga, Bags 8-Year Jail Term For Embezzlement

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A court in Equatorial Guinea has sentenced Baltasar Ebang Engonga, a senior government official, to eight years in prison for embezzlement, following months of notoriety over leaked sex tapes involving him and the wives of other officials.

According to the country’s supreme court press office, the Bioko provincial tribunal found Engonga guilty of diverting public funds by claiming false professional travel expenses. The funds, worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, were instead used for personal benefit.

Engonga, widely known by his nickname “Bello”, was formerly head of the national financial investigation agency. He and five other senior officials faced charges of embezzling large sums in the oil-rich Central African nation.

In November 2024, Engonga made international headlines after sex tapes — some reportedly recorded in his finance ministry office — surfaced on social media while he was already in detention. The scandal sparked widespread online parody, including satirical songs, dances, and memes referencing a spoof virility drug dubbed “Balthazariem.”

The court also imposed a fine of $220,000 in addition to his prison sentence.

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BIG STORY

Nigeria’s Non-Oil Exports Hit $3.23 Billion In H1 2025 — NEPC

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Nigeria’s non-oil exports reached $3.225 billion in the first half of 2025, reflecting a 19.59% growth from $2.696 billion in the same period of 2024, according to the Nigerian Export Promotion Council (NEPC).

The NEPC Director-General, Nonye Ayeni, announced this in Abuja on Sunday while presenting the H1 2025 Non-Oil Export Performance Report.

She stated that export volumes rose to 4.04 million metric tonnes in H1 2025, compared to 3.83 million metric tonnes during the same period last year.

Ayeni recalled that Q1 2025 exports alone were valued at $1.791 billion, representing a 24.75% increase from $1.436 billion in Q1 2024, while volumes grew by 24.3% to 2.416 million metric tonnes.

She revealed that Nigeria exported 236 different products in the first half of the year, representing a 16.83% increase from the 202 products exported in H1 2024.

The exports consisted of agricultural commodities, extractive industry products, manufactured goods, and semi-processed items. Ayeni observed that non-oil exports are shifting from traditional agricultural goods towards higher-value semi-manufactured products.

Based on data from Pre-shipment Inspection Agents (PIAs), cocoa beans ranked first among the top 20 products exported in the first half of 2025, accounting for 34.88% of the total export value compared to 23.18% in 2024.

Urea/fertiliser followed in second place with 17.65%, up from 13.78% in the same period of 2024.

Ayeni attributed part of the growth to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which she said has expanded market access and lowered tariffs for Nigerian exporters.

She also pointed to NEPC’s intervention programmes — covering quality, standards, packaging, export documentation, and certifications — as vital to supporting export expansion.

According to her, rising demand from emerging markets such as India, Brazil, Vietnam, and various African countries has also contributed to the increase in non-oil exports.

She noted that the rise in value-added exports has enhanced earnings as more Nigerian exporters adopt product transformation before shipment.

Ayeni restated NEPC’s dedication to working with the Ministry of Industry, Trade, and Investment, along with other stakeholders, to further grow export value and volume in line with the President Bola Tinubu administration’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the ministry’s policy objectives.

 

Credit: Nairametrics

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