On Monday, June 23, 2025, the prestigious Brand Africa 100: Kenya’s Best Brands awards took center stage at the Capital Club in Nairobi, celebrating the most admired local and global brands among Kenyans. The event brought together influential leaders from across business, humanitarian, media, and government sectors, united in recognizing the power of branding in shaping Kenya’s economic and cultural future.
Setting the Stage
Opening remarks were delivered by Mebs Tejpar and Gina Din-Kariuki, Chairperson of Brand Leadership Group. Both speakers passionately underscored the pivotal role that homegrown brands play in defining Africa’s identity and future influence on the global stage.
An Evening of Insight & Recognition
Guiding the evening was Thebe Ikalafeng, Founder and Chairman of Brand Africa, who traced the evolution of the Brand Africa 100 initiative and shared thought-provoking insights on brand perceptions across African nations.
GeoPoll’s East Africa Regional Director, John (JP) Murunga, and Kantar East Africa’s Chief Growth Officer, Daniel Oseman, then took the stage to present an in-depth look into the survey’s methodology and findings. Their presentation revealed the scope and scale of this year’s study, emphasizing the voice of the African consumer in brand admiration.
Key Insights from the 2025 Survey
30+ countries across all 5 regions representing over 80% of Africa’s population.
15,000+ respondents aged 18 and above.
Over 300,000 brand mentions, covering 3,000+ unique brands.
Only 11% of the Top 100 brands admired by Africans are African-made — the lowest in Brand Africa 100 history. In Kenya 25% of the top brands are African made.
Celebrating Kenya’s Standouts
Safaricom retained its position as Kenya’s Most Admired Made-in-Kenya Brand and Most Admired NSE-listed Brand.
Equity Bank emerged as the Most Admired Financial Services Brand Made in Kenya.
Globally, Nike held its top spot as Africa’s Most Admired Brand, while MTN was lauded as the leading African brand contributing positively to society.
Kenya’s Most Admired Brands
Most Admired Alcoholic Beverage Brands
1
Tusker
2
EABL
3
Guinness
Most Admired African Brand
Most Admired Auto-Manufacturers Brands
Most Admired Consumer, Non-cyclical Brands
1
Brookside Milk
2
Ketepa Tea
3
Bidco Kenya
Most Admired Personal Care Brands
1
SoftCare
2
Garnier
3
Nivea
Most Admired Retail Brands
Most Admired Media Brands
1
Citizen TV
2
Royal Media
3
Nation Media/ NTV
Most Admired Financial Services Brands
1
Equity Bank
2
Cooperative Bank
3
KCB
Most Admired Doing Brand Doing Good for Society, and the Environment – Non-Profit
Most Admired Doing Brand Doing Good for Society, and the Environment – Private Sector
1
Safaricom
2
KCB
3
Equity
Most Admired Country Contributing to a Better Africa
1
Kenya
2
South Africa
3
USA
4
Rwanda
5
China
Most Admired Telecommunications Brands
Most Admired African Brand
1
Safaricom
2
DSTV
3
Tusker
4
Kenya Airways
5
MTN
Most Admired African Brand Contributing to a Better Africa
1
Safaricom
2
Equity
3
MTN
4
DSTV
5
Citizen TV
Outstanding Awards
At the 2025 Brand Africa 100: Kenya’s Best Brands awards, three exceptional leaders were honored for their visionary contributions across different sectors. William Kalombo, CEO of Marketing Africa Limited, received the Award for Distinguished Leadership in Industry for his pivotal role in shaping Kenya’s marketing landscape, notably through initiatives like the Nairobi Marketers Night and his impactful mentorship efforts. Brenda Mbathi, CEO of Two Rivers International Finance and Innovation Centre, earned the Award for Distinguished Leadership in the Private Sector, recognized for her instrumental work in positioning Kenya as a hub for finance and innovation through Africa-led investment and global partnerships. In the public sector, Agriculture and Livestock Development Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe was awarded the Distinguished Leadership in Public Service accolade for his transformative leadership, particularly in public health reforms, digital transformation, and elevating Kenya’s international standing through effective governance.
Performance of African Brands
In 2025, African brands have dropped from 14% to 11% share of the Top 100 Most Admired Brands in Africa, demonstrating a persistent challenge in growing homegrown brand loyalty across the continent.
Leading the charge once again are iconic African names, with MTN (South Africa), Dangote (Nigeria), Azam Group (Tanzania), DStv (South Africa), Glo (Nigeria) and Jumia (Nigeria) maintaining their positions as the Top 5 most admired African brands, based on spontaneous brand recall.
Despite their strong presence, the overall African brand representation remains low, calling for renewed efforts to nurture, support, and promote Made-in-Africa brands across sectors.
Discover the full list of the 2025 Top 100 Most Admired Brands in Africa and see how brands are performing across the continent.
Conclusion
GeoPoll was pleased to once again partner with Brand Africa and Kantar on the launch of this year’s Brand Africa 100, an annual list of the top brands in Africa and in the key sectors. This year marks 15 years since Brand Africa’s launch, aand GeoPoll is proud to have played a pivotal role in this journey by supporting data collection through its mobile-based research methodology since 2014.
In Kenya, as in other countries, GeoPoll’s mobile surveys enabled the capture of timely, reliable insights from a broad and diverse demographic, ensuring the rankings reflect authentic consumer perceptions. This continued collaboration highlights GeoPoll’s commitment to advancing African-led narratives through rigorous, accessible data and reinforces the importance of research in shaping brand and policy landscapes on the continent.
Contact us to learn more about the survey, our capabilities, or to get deeper insights into brands in Africa.
