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| Tony Elumelu |
By Amaka Ibeji
The images of AfriLand Towers ablaze in Lagos are still vivid in the minds of many. Smoke billowing into the sky, workers scrambling for safety, and fire services racing against time painted a frightening reminder of how quickly a normal day can spiral into disaster. Beyond the immediate tragedy of displacement, loss of lives and assets, and disruption to livelihoods, the incident has become a metaphor for risk in African boardrooms. For corporate leaders, particularly board directors entrusted with oversight, the fire is not just about one building in Lagos; it is about the fragility of trust, operations, and continuity when risks are underestimated.
On LinkedIn, one risk professional captured the essence of the moment bluntly: “Risk management has never been more critical, be it workplace safety, ESG oversight, or anticipating blind spots before they erupt.” The sentiment resonated because it pointed beyond the fire to a broader truth: organisations in Africa are grappling with complex risks, from physical safety to cyber disruptions, and now the emerging frontier of artificial intelligence.
“Many are internal, rooted in governance blind spots, underinvestment in prevention, and failure to apply lessons learnt elsewhere to local contexts.”
One of the most underestimated roles of the board in Africa is creating a culture of foresight. Just as fire marshals repeatedly warn about safety standards that are too often neglected until it is too late, boards must resist the temptation to focus solely on quarterly returns while ignoring systemic risks that can wipe out value overnight. AfriLand Towers reminds us starkly that risks in Africa are not only external – whether government policy shifts, currency fluctuations, or political instability. Many are internal, rooted in governance blind spots, underinvestment in prevention, and failure to apply lessons learnt elsewhere to local contexts.
Artificial intelligence is a case in point. Across the continent, AI tools are being deployed in banking, insurance, agriculture, hiring, and even policing. For many boards, the promise of efficiency and competitive advantage is shiny enough to draw rapid adoption. Yet, just like ignored fire alarms, AI risks simmer quietly: biased algorithms that discriminate, privacy breaches that erode trust, operational blackouts when systems fail, and regulatory penalties when compliance falters. Without strong governance, boards may embrace AI’s flame while overlooking its potential spark for disaster.
Imagine a financial services firm rolling out AI-driven credit scoring to millions of customers. The system is fed incomplete or skewed local data, leading to unfair loan denials across certain demographics. Outrage brews, regulators respond, and before long, the reputation that took decades to build goes up in flames as fast as the tower in Lagos. For boards, this is no longer hypothetical; it is the new terrain of risk management where technology, ethics, and governance collide.
The lesson from AfriLand is not to shy away from innovation or urban development. Lagos will rebuild; firms will still adopt AI. The real lesson is to structure governance so that no adoption is blind, and no boardroom is unaware of risks building under the surface. Risk management is not a back-office checklist. It is a board-level strategy, anchored in asking uncomfortable questions: What are we missing? Who will be hurt if this fails? What structures exist for early warning systems? How do we test our assumptions before they ignite?
Boards in Africa are uniquely positioned to lead in this space. The continent is building infrastructure, deploying digital identity schemes, experimenting with fintech, and solving agricultural challenges with AI. This is transformational work. But if fire drills are ignored in corporate offices and algorithm audits are skipped in data-driven strategies, progress risks turning to ashes.
The AfriLand Towers on fire is a tragedy we must not waste. It is a reminder that risk, whether physical or digital, is real, urgent, and unforgiving. For board directors, it is the wake-up call to own the responsibility of foresight, to invest in risk frameworks that are proactive rather than reactionary, and to remember always: value is protected not just by chasing growth but by anticipating what can go wrong.
African boards that grasp this truth will not only build safer enterprises but also safeguard the trust of employees, investors, and communities. The flames of AfriLand will die down, but the questions it raises for boardroom vigilance must burn far longer.