Brand Africa and African Union honour the 100 Most Influential Africa CMOs in Addis Ababa

A two-day programme of celebration and collective action, from the Hyatt Regency rooftop to Africa Hall, marks a defining moment for African brand leadership

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, 02 June 2026 -/African Media Agency(AMA)/ – Against the skyline of Africa’s diplomatic capital, with the sun setting over the Ethiopian highlands, the inaugural Africa CMO 100 (ACMO100) celebration brought together marketing and brand leaders from across the continent and diaspora on the rooftop terrace of the Hyatt Regency Addis Ababa. The evening, presented by ABSA, was hosted by Brand Africa in partnership with the African Union Commission and Opportunity Africa, and marked the first formal recognition of the 100 Most Influential African and Diaspora CMOs.

Collectively the honourees hail from 21 African nations that together generate more than US$2.3 trillion, over 80% of Africa’s GDP. The brands and companies they lead generate, on latest reported full-year figures, combined revenues approaching US$750 to 800 billion globally. The African-headquartered brands on the list – the telcos, banks, retailers and industrials that report mostly African revenue – account for roughly US$140 billion on their own. It’s a formidable list of the most influential list.

The two-day programme in Addis Ababa, part of Brand Africa Week 2026, opened with the ACMO100 celebration on 23 May and continued on 24 May at Africa Hall, the historic home of the Economic Commission for Africa and founding site of the Organisation of African Unity, the predecessor to the African Union, where the honourees convened under the patronage of the African Union Commission, Brand Africa, Opportunity Africa and ABSA to develop a blueprint for driving a made-in-Africa and buy-Africa agenda.

A Historic Evening in the Heart of Africa

Welcomed to the rooftop terrace as the Addis Ababa skyline turned to gold, guests were addressed by Thebe Ikalafeng, Founder and Chairman of Brand Africa; Fana Abay, President of the Ethiopian Marketing Professionals Association (EMPA); and a representation from ABSA delivered by Mwihaki Wachira, CMO of ABSA Kenya. The African Union Commission was represented by Faith Ochieng Odhiambo, delivering a message on behalf of Mrs. Leslie Richer, Director of Information and Communication, and Biniam Taye Endeshaw, the Deputy Commissioner for the Addis Ababa City Tourism Commission.

“Tonight is more than a celebration of individuals. It is a celebration of the unseen influence behind the brands that shape how Africa sees itself and how the world sees Africa,” Thebe Ikalafeng – Founder and Chairman, Brand Africa and Convenor, ACMO.

“Africa does not have a talent problem. What became abundantly clear through this process is that Africa possesses world-class marketing leadership . . . leaders capable of building globally competitive brands while understanding perhaps better than anyone what it takes to win the African consumer,” he concluded.

The African Union: Brands as Instruments of Integration

Delivering a message on behalf of the Director of Information and Communication of the African Union Commission, Faith Ochieng Odhiambo underscored the strategic alignment between Africa’s top marketing leaders and the continent’s ambitions under Agenda 2063 and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

“CMOs are not simply marketing products or services, they are shaping perceptions, and influencing consumer behaviour, cultural confidence, and how Africa positions itself in the global economy,” Faith Ochieng Odhiambo, on behalf of Mrs. Leslie Richer, Director of Information and Communication, African Union Commission.

ABSA: The Story as Africa’s Greatest Technology

Delivering the keynote address on behalf of Sydney Nhlanhla Mbhele, ACMO100 honouree and Group Chief Marketing Officer of ABSA, Mwihaki Wachira, CMO of ABSA Kenya reflected on African storytelling as the original and most enduring instrument of marketing. Her address, ‘The Heartbeat of a Continent: The Power of African Storytelling’, drew on philosophy, tradition and the demands of modern brand leadership.

“For too long, the ‘African Story’ was a commodity sold by outsiders. But look around you. The mirror is shattered, and the lion has found his voice. The campfire is no longer just in the village; it is on every smartphone, in every boardroom, and on every streaming platform. The world is hungry for the soul of Africa,” Mwihaki Wachira, CMO – ABSA Kenya on behalf of Sydney Mbhele, Group CMO – ABSA Group. “Our stories matter,” she concluded.

The ACMO100: Independent, Pan-African, Comprehensive

The ACMO100 is produced by Brand Africa in association with African Business magazine, MIPAD and African Media Agency (AMA). The selection process, drawing on nominations by former CMOs, clients, creative and strategy advisors and leaders and thought leaders; editorial research; peer review, and validation covered all six economic regions of Africa and extended into the diaspora, affirming the breadth and depth of African marketing excellence. The list is unpaid, unsponsored and not self-nominated, underscoring its independence and integrity.

The honourees attended alongside over 80 senior agency, government and local CMOs. Honourees who were represented at the celebration among the exclusive invite-only cocktail for marketing, business and media guests, included Africa’s leading CMO’s covering every economic region in Africa:

Day Two: Africa Hall and the CMO Blueprint

On 24 May 2026, the ACMO100 honourees reconvened at Africa Hall, the landmark United Nations Economic Commission for Africa venue where the Organisation of African Unity was founded in 1963, for a closed working session that moved from celebration to collective action. Under the patronage of the African Union, Brand Africa and Opportunity Africa, the continent’s most influential marketing leaders spent the day sharing insights and lived experience to develop a draft blueprint for the AU and Brand Africa on three interlocking priorities: driving a made-in-Africa and buy-Africa agenda; leveraging intra-African trade to build continental brands and industries; and shaping a bold, self-authored African narrative for the world.

The convening of Africa’s top CMOs inside Africa Hall, a space that carries the full weight of the continent’s political and institutional history, was itself a deliberate signal: that brand leadership, narrative power and economic integration are inseparable instruments of the Africa that Agenda 2063 envisions.

Opportunity Africa: #NotWaiting

The day closed with the pre-launch of the Opportunity Africa global campaign, #NotWaiting — presented by Moky Makura, Executive Director of Africa No Filter. Focused on African youth, the campaign is designed to fundamentally reshape the global African narrative: replacing deficit framing with defiance, and aid-dependency tropes with the confidence of a continent that is not waiting for permission to define itself.

Opportunity Africa (www.opportunityafrica.africa) is a pan-African movement co-led by Africa No Filter and Brand Africa. The #NotWaiting campaign marks its first major global activation, channelling the energy of Africa’s youth as the primary storytellers and protagonists of a new African identity.

“#NotWaiting is about making our stories more visible to Africans first. Because if we begin to look at ourselves differently, the world will see us differently too,” Moky Makura – Executive Director, Africa No Filter.

Distributed by African Media Agency (AMA) on behalf of Brand Africa

About Brand Africa
Brand Africa (www.brand.africa) is a pan-African initiative driving a brand-led renaissance of African identity, culture, and competitiveness. Since its founding in 2010, Brand Africa has championed — through pioneering research, advocacy, and the celebration of African creativity, enterprise and talent — how Africa is seen by itself and by the world, to inspire what Africa can become on Africa’s own terms. Its flagship programmes are the Brand Africa 100 | Africa’s Best Brands, the research and ranking of Africa’s best brands now in its 16th year, and the Africa CMO 100, the most comprehensive and research-led listing of the 100 most influential African and diaspora CMOs.

About the ACMO100
The Africa CMO 100 (ACMO100) recognises the 100 Most Influential African and Diaspora CMOs across six regions: Southern Africa, West Africa, East Africa, North Africa, Central Africa and the Diaspora. Produced in association with African Business magazine, MIPAD and African Media Agency, the ACMO100 is independent, unpaid, unsponsored and not self-nominated. Full list available at african.business and www.brand.africa.

About Opportunity Africa
Opportunity Africa (www.opportunityafrica.africa) is a pan-African movement co-led by Africa No Filter and Brand Africa, championing a new, positive and forward-looking global narrative for Africa and its diaspora. Its inaugural global campaign, #NotWaiting, centres African youth as the authors of a new continental story.

Media Contacts
African Media Agency (AMA)
Eloïne Barry | eloine@africanmediaagency.com
Thebe Ikalafeng | thebe@brand.africa

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