CMC Connect LLP has launched Crisis-X, an artificial intelligence driven crisis management platform described as the first of its kind on the African continent, at its Crisis Management Advocacy Month 2026 flagship conference held at Metropolitan Club, Victoria Island, Lagos.

The conference, themed “Crisis Management in the AI Milieu: New Threats, Smarter Responses,” brought together communications professionals, regulators, legal practitioners and media executives for what the firm’s Lead Partner described as a defining moment for the profession across Africa. A distinctive feature of the platform is NAYA, a human element built into the AI tool to ensure that technology driven crisis response retains a human dimension.

Delivering his address, Yomi Badejo-Okusanya, Lead Partner of CMC Connect LLP, set the tone for the conference with a message that was equal parts warning and call to action. He noted that the profession had reached a moment that demanded honest reflection and fundamental change.

“There are moments when professions must pause, reflect and redefine themselves. This is one of those moments,” he said. “Crisis management must move from the background to the centre of leadership. Not just reacting to crises but anticipating them, preparing for them and leading through them.”

Badejo-Okusanya made the case for Crisis-X with data that underscored the urgency of the moment. More than 60 percent of organisations have faced AI-amplified crises, false information spreads six times faster than the truth, and nearly 70 percent of leaders are not prepared for the speed at which reputational threats now move.

“These are not just statistics. They are a warning,” he said. He described the platform as built for a communications environment where deepfakes can distort reality, cloned voices can mislead decisions and bot networks can manufacture outrage at scale. “Crisis-X gives organisations the power to act in the moment that matters most. It stops misinformation before it spreads. It protects reputation before it is damaged. It preserves trust before it is broken,” he said.

He was emphatic that the real crisis facing organisations today is not technology itself but the dangerous gap between how fast threats are evolving and how slowly institutions are responding.

“You cannot outpace an algorithm with hesitation. And you cannot fix in nine steps what could have been prevented with one,” he said. Badejo-Okusanya closed with a charge that captured the spirit of the entire conference. “In the age of AI, a stitch in time does not just save nine. It saves reputation, leadership and the trust that defines them both.”

In his keynote address, Dr. Bosun Tijani, Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, reframed the conversation around crisis management by urging professionals to see crisis not as a problem to be survived but as a catalyst for transformation. Drawing from his experience, he argued that what separates organisations that thrive through crisis from those that are destroyed by it is simply preparation. “The most effective system for managing crises is not just about recovery or renewal. Just when you think things can’t do well, it can become a trigger for reform, a catalyst for innovation and an opportunity to rebuild stronger systems,” he said.

Dr. Tijani was particularly direct about the role of technology in shifting crisis management from a reactive exercise to a forward looking discipline. “Due to the environment, crisis management has shifted from reaction to foresight. Today we can collect and analyse vast amounts of data in real time. We can identify patterns from past and present events and anticipate risks before they escalate. This is something that countries, organisations and individuals must embrace to survive the world we live in today,” he said.

On the role of communication in crisis response, the Minister noted that how a crisis is communicated is as consequential as how it is managed operationally. “The way a crisis is communicated is important because the information shared will shape how people behave and react to it. Trust will shape the outcomes we want to achieve. If people do not believe that leadership is trustworthy enough to deal with a situation, the outcome will be seen as not appropriate regardless of what actually happens,” he said. He closed by connecting crisis management to Nigeria’s broader digital infrastructure ambitions. “The real measure of success whenever we have a crisis is not just stability. It is whether we emerge better than before,” he said.

Dr. Olalekan Fadolapo, Director General of the Advertising Regulatory Council of Nigeria (ARCON)and Special Guest of Honour representing the Minister of Information and National Orientation, noted that the shift from e-commerce to a full digital economy has fundamentally changed the operating environment for regulators, government agencies and the media alike.

He stressed that regulatory bodies must evolve in step with the digital transition, particularly as artificial intelligence increasingly influences the content, distribution and targeting of advertising and commercial communications across Nigeria.

Segun Ogunsanya, Chairman, Airtel Africa Foundation, brought a frank and forward-looking perspective to the conversation, acknowledging that artificial intelligence is simultaneously the greatest opportunity and the most significant challenge facing organisations today.

“It is here. It is changing economies, influencing societies and redefining the boundaries of human capabilities. But with this power comes vulnerability, and the very systems designed to enhance our decisions can also expose us to new forms of risk,” he said. He warned that the AI environment introduces threats that are faster, more complex and often invisible, noting that a single defective model can cascade into financial instability, a biased algorithm can widen social divides and unregulated deployment can compromise national security. “There should be punishment for those who use AI irresponsibly,” he said, adding that effective crisis management in the AI era requires moving beyond reactive firefighting to proactive resilience and fostering genuine collaboration across technology, policy and communications disciplines.