Johannesburg - South Africa was named the most valued
African brand at the fourth BrandFinance Global Nation Brands league at the
Johannesburg Stock Exchange on Wednesday.
This showed the country’s progress and recognised its
hosting of the Soccer World Cup and its acceptance into the Brazil, Russia,
India, China and South Africa (Brics) group of nations, said International
Marketing Council chairperson Anitha Soni.
It was also recognition of South Africa as an important
emerging country in its own right.
The awards, which were presented by Brand Africa in
collaboration with Brand Finance plc (UK), look at the financial worth of a
nation’s brand, considering its past and present financial position, and the
strength of the nation’s brand.
Soni said South Africa had shown the world it could organise
and present a global event like the World Cup, and that Brics was a platform
for promoting economic growth throughout Africa.
The league adjudicated the brands of 138 nations, including
36 African nations.
The top 10 countries in Africa were South Africa, Egypt,
Nigeria, Morocco, Algeria, Angola, Tunisia, Ghana, Kenya and Libya.
MTN Group [JSE:MTN] was adjudged the Top African Corporate Brand, followed by Standard Bank Group [JSE:SBK], Absa Group [JSE:ASA], FNB and the Nedbank Group [JSE:NED].