One of a number of telecommunications companies on this list, the French multinational firm operates in many Francophone countries, most of which see Orange as the telecoms company with the biggest market share. Around 16 countries in Africa have Orange or Orange-owned telecommunications companies in their territories.
The Nigerian-based telecommunications carrier is in operation throughout the West African countries of Nigeria, Republic of Benin, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. The business is known for consistently carrying out promotions for its subscribers, to ensure that they are kept happy on their network.
Chinese handset maker, Tecno Mobile continues to climb up the list of Africa’s most admired tech companies, moving two spots up compared to the 2015/16 list. The company makes smartphones that are far more affordable compared to the likes of Samsung and Apple.
This multinational telecommunications giant is based in the UAE, with operations in 15 countries around the Middle East, Asia and Africa. The 13th largest mobile network operator on the planet runs operations in Egypt, Nigeria, Tanzania, Sudan, Libya and parts of West Africa, allowing it to build a reputation as a company to be admired.
The Japanese consumer electronics brand is well known within Africa as a maker of quality products across a wide spectrum of price ranges, allowing consumers the ability to select from a wider catalog of available home entertainment, mobile, and other electronics products.
Headquartered in India, but with a strong presence on the African continent, Airtel connects subscribers in Kenya, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Gabon, Sierra Leone, Chad, Tanzania, Congo, Zambia, Madagascar, Uganda, Seychelles, Malawi, Nigeria, DRC, Niger and Rwanda, which is perhaps why it is admired as a brand on the continent.
The highest placed African brand on this list, South Africa’s MTN is the continent’s largest telecoms operator. They revolutionized the mobile industry by being only the second telecoms provider globally to introduce a prepaid system, giving mobile access to a wider African audience.
The car manufacturer from Japan is the most admired brand in its own category, beating German manufacturer BMW (which would have been the 13th brand on this list). A simple look around the streets of many African countries would reveal, by sheer number of vehicles versus competitors, the connection that African consumers have with Toyota.
Nokia burst onto the African scene many years ago with a selection of popular feature phones such as the Nokia 3110, which soon dominated the market in the early days of mobile in Africa. To this day, Nokia’s reputation as a brand worth admiring in Africa remains strong.
The third-placed brand on this list may surprise a few people, but consumer electronics power player LG have earned themselves place on the podium in this particular ranking, beating brands like Nokia, MTN and Sony to the punch.
In a list dominated by telecommunications companies, the handset makers of high-end smartphones have also done well to earn a place in African hearts, with iPhone, iPad and Mac computer maker Apple positioning themselves as Africa’s second most admired tech brand.
With the proliferation of mobile in Africa, a mega mobile brand like Samsung has inevitably built a strong platform on the continent, and was ranked the most admired brand in Africa for 2016/17.
