Brands/Products
Dangote Emerges Most Valuable Brand in Nigeria
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Nigeria’s Dangote has emerged the most valuable brand among the top 50 brands in Nigeria for 2018 which were unveiled at the weekend in Lagos.
This is coming barely three months after the brand was adjudged the most admired brand of African origin by Consumers in a brand rating coordinated by South Africa based Brand Leadership in conjunction with Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).
Brand Nigeria, the Agency that coordinated the survey in Nigeria, in its report lauded the efforts of the handlers of the Dangote Brand because this is the first time a Nigerian brand would be achieving the feat since 2013.
Unveiling the list of the top 50 brands at an event attended by top executives of leading corporate organizations in the country as well as stakeholders in Marketing and Advertising Industry, Mr Taiwo Oluboyede, the Head of Brand Nigeria explained that 46 percent of the top brands amounting to 23 are Nigerian brands.
Giving the highlights of the brands rating, he stated that Promasidor Nigeria Limited emerged the highest gainer jumping 15 points from last year, the followed by the trio of BUA, Nine Mobile and Olam all of which moved 12 points from last year position, while seven brands, Conoil, Channels TV, Union Bank, Access Bank, Chi, Toyota, and GTBank maintained their positions.
He stated further that Fidelity bank came as a first entrant this year and Stallion Group making a fresh return to the top 50 brands this having exited before.
The top 50 brands in Nigeria, Mr Soboyede maintained are the brands that have succeeded in delivering their promises to the consumers. “They are fast growing in value and they are the drivers of our economy. The top brands this year are those that have been able to analyse needs, see opportunities by creating solutions to them and communicating same to the consumers.
“They have also become so good at it that the consumers often refer to them with the name of the need they meet that is their products or services. These brands have found how to deliver something special often times,” he said.
Giving insights into how the evaluation of the top 50 brands was carried out, Mr Soboyede said: “we used the Brand Strength Model (BSM index). It is model that measures a brand’s ability to deliver on its promise to the consumers from the consumer’s point of view. The model uses basic qualitative elements and there are seven variables that goes into the BSM model.”
According to him, the variables started with a test of people’s knowledge and affinity with the brands operational in Nigeria.
“We had a top on the mind survey where people tell us brads that easily come to their mind or brand they can recall.
“Other variables in the model are innovation-this is a test how innovative a brand service delivery is; Quality-this checks some factors that enhance consumer’s confidence in product delivery; Category Leadership-this is a classification of brands within their industry; Online engagements-this checks how active the brand’s online platforms are and how engaging it has been from last evaluation; National Spread-this checks operational presence of a brand across the country,” he stated.
Chief Corporate Communication Officer of the Dangote Group, Mr Anthony Chiejina, said the management was not surprised at the ranking because the company has continuously deepened and delivered on its core values is to be a world-class enterprise that is passionate about the quality of life of the people and giving high returns to stakeholders.
“And this philosophy is driven by values, which include customer service, entrepreneurship, excellence and leadership. In any of our subsidiaries, the focus is to provide local, value-added products and services that meet the ‘basic needs’ of the populace.
“Through the construction and operation of large scale manufacturing facilities in Nigeria and across Africa, the Group is focused on building local manufacturing capacity to generate employment, prevent capital flight and provide locally produced goods for the people.
“The expansion of our business especially the Cement which has operations in 14 African countries including Nigeria, Benin, Ghana, Senegal, South Africa and Zambia, among others has added to popularity of our company and the products,” Mr Chiejina stated.
It would be recalled that back in July, the Dangote brand came atop in the ranking of 100 best brands in Africa themed “Brand Africa:100”, the sixth edition announced in Johannesburg, South Africa.
The Brand leadership in the ranking list said of Dangote brand “Nigerian industrial brand Dangote is the number one African brand recalled when consumers are prompted about the continent (Africa) of origin while the South African tele-communications brand MTN is the number one African brand spontaneously recalled irrespective of continent of origin.
The United States sports and fitness brand, Nike, is the overall brand in Africa spontaneously recalled by consumers.
The Brand Africa 100 ranking is based on a survey among consumers 18 years and older, conducted in 23 countries across Africa. The countries, representing all African economic regions, collectively account for 75% of the population and the 74% of the GDP of Africa.
African brands rose slightly to account for 17% of the Top 100 brands in Africa, non-African brands retained their firm position in Africa with 83% share of the Top 100 most admired brands in Africa. Brands from Europe leads the table with 40%, North America at 24% and Asia 19%. West Africa 6% with only Nigerian brands and Southern Africa 6%.
The Top 100 is dominated by technology and electronic brands (29%), consumer (non-cyclical) (19%), apparel (15%), automobile (8%), food (7%) and sports & fitness (5%) categories are the top categories.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Association of Licensed Telecommunications Operators of Nigeria (ALTON) has backed the call by the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) for local smartphone manufacturing to accelerate digital inclusion.
The ALTON Chairman, Mr Gbenga Adebayo, described the proposal as a practical measure capable of accelerating broadband adoption and expanding digital inclusion across the country.
He said Nigeria must deliberately transition from being predominantly a technology consumer to becoming an innovator, designer and manufacturer of digital technologies.
According to him, Nigeria’s large telecommunications market and youthful population provide the scale and human capital needed for world-class technology manufacturing.
The ALTON chairman said the country’s ambition should extend beyond assembling smartphones to developing complete technology capabilities across the value chain.
“Our ambition should extend beyond assembling devices. We must pursue genuine knowledge transfer, research and development, product engineering, software development, semiconductor capabilities and large-scale manufacturing,” he stressed.
He said the objective should be producing devices and digital technologies for Nigeria, Africa and the global market.
Mr Adebayo said the emergence of Artificial Intelligence had further strengthened Nigeria’s opportunity to become a competitive technology manufacturing hub.
He said Artificial Intelligence was transforming product design, manufacturing, quality assurance, supply chain management, customer experience and software innovation.
According to him, investing in AI-enabled manufacturing will improve productivity, create high-value jobs and strengthen Nigeria’s competitiveness across Africa.
NCC’s Board Chairman, Mr Idris Olorunnimben, at a Digital Africa Summit Roundtable in Shanghai, called for local smartphone production and innovative financing to tackle the proliferation of counterfeit and non-type-approved devices through stronger market integrity.
The ALTON boos described the grey market as a major challenge affecting consumers, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and the wider telecommunications ecosystem.
According to him, robust local manufacturing supported by strong quality standards will provide credible alternatives to grey-market imports.
He said effective type approval, competitive pricing and consumer confidence would encourage wider acceptance of locally manufactured smartphones.
“This will strengthen consumer protection, improve network performance, retain greater value within our economy, and stimulate industrial growth,” he said.
Mr Adebayo also endorsed innovative smartphone financing, stronger device management systems and identity-enabled credit frameworks.
He added that the initiatives would enable more Nigerians to acquire quality smartphones through affordable payment models.
According to him, telecom operators remain ready to partner with the government, manufacturers, financiers, academia, investors and development partners to build sustainable local manufacturing.
The ALTON boss described the initiative as a national economic transformation agenda capable of creating jobs and strengthening Nigeria’s position in the global digital economy.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Woodrow has been named Africa Agency of the Year 2026 by PRovoke Media, one of the world’s leading authorities on the communications industry.
The award recognises Woodrow’s rapid growth across the continent and its work supporting clients navigating some of Africa’s most complex communication, policy, reputation and stakeholder challenges.
In announcing the award, PRovoke Media described Woodrow as “a different kind of communications firm for Africa. Built locally, but operating across borders, with a focus on high-stakes, high-complexity mandates that reflect the realities of the continent’s political and economic landscape.”
Founded five years ago by Mr Charlie Tarr, who has spent more than two decades working across African markets advising various organisations, Woodrow has grown from its Nairobi headquarters into a multi-market African consultancy. It now has teams and partners across Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Zambia, Senegal and South Africa, delivering work across 13 countries.
Since 2024, Woodrow has more than doubled revenue, expanded delivery across more African markets and supported assignments that have generated global audiences exceeding 70 million people in multiple markets.
Speaking on the recognition, Mr Charlie Tarr, Founder and CEO of Woodrow Communications, said, “When we started Woodrow, we believed Africa deserved communications advice built for Africa’s realities, not imported templates. This recognition is a testament to our people, our clients and our belief that world-class strategic communications can be built from the continent and compete with the very best anywhere in the world. This feels more like a beginning than an arrival.”
Adding his input, Mr David Karega, Head of East and Southern Africa, added, “This award belongs to the team and the clients who have trusted us with some of their most important moments. From major launches and investment announcements to reputation management, policy engagement and crisis situations, we have had the privilege of helping them achieve influence. It shows that globally recognised PR excellence can be built from Nairobi and delivered across Africa.”
Woodrow’s growth has been driven by its local-first operating model, combining deep in-market expertise with regional coordination and strategic advisory support. It supports organisations such as AGRA, Bupa Global, BIC and a range of international foundations, investors and development institutions working across Africa.
Looking ahead, Woodrow is investing in new capabilities around digital influence, audience intelligence and integrated stakeholder engagement to help clients navigate the media landscape in Africa.
“Africa has never been a side conversation for us,” Mr Tarr added, “It sits at the centre of our work and future. The continent is producing some of the world’s most important opportunities in technology, investment, food systems, climate and economic transformation. We are excited to continue helping clients shape those conversations, build influence and contribute to Africa’s growth.”
SportyTV has been added to select DStv and GOtv packages in Nigeria, expanding the sports content available to subscribers. The 24-hour sports channel offers a range of live sporting events alongside news, analyses, highlights and is available to DStv Yanga and GOtv Jolli customers. The channel is also available on GOtv in Kenya and Ghana.
The addition of SportyTV complements the existing sports offering on DStv and GOtv, providing subscribers with access to additional football, basketball and combat sports content.
“SportyTV is a valuable addition to the DStv Access and GOtv Value content offering across Africa,” said David Mignot, CEO of CANAL+ Africa. “It expands the range of sporting events available to customers at an accessible price point and reflects our commitment to making quality sports content available to audiences across the continent.”
Sudeep Ramnani, Founder and CEO of Sporty Group, said: “Our ambition has always been to provide African audiences with broad access to sports content and storytelling. Through this partnership with CANAL+, we are extending that offering to more households across the continent.”
“The SportyTV channel gives DStv and GOtv subscribers additional viewing options that complement SuperSport’s existing range of sports programming,” said Rendani Ramovha, Director of Sport Content for English and Portuguese-speaking Africa at CANAL+. “It broadens the overall sports proposition with additional live events and supporting content.”
SportyTV’s football schedule includes competitions such as the English Premier League, Carabao Cup, EFL Championship, Women’s FA Cup, La Liga, Bundesliga, Serie A and the Spanish Super Cup. The channel also carries South American competitions including the Copa Libertadores, Argentina League and Brazil Serie A, as well as select basketball and other international sports content.
Elias Gallego, Vice President of Business Development, Marketing and Media at Sporty Group, said: “Launching SportyTV on DStv and GOtv allows us to extend our reach and bring a broader range of sports content to viewers across Africa.”
SportyTV will also carry dedicated club channels including Real Madrid TV, Arsenal TV, Chelsea TV and Manchester City TV. Additional content includes coverage from leagues in Greece and Saudi Arabia, alongside basketball programming featuring the NBA.
The channel launched on 10 June 2026 and is available in HD on DStv channel 236 and GOtv channel 58 in Nigeria.
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