Artificial Intelligence-Driven Public Relations in Sub-Saharan Africa: AI-Powered Sentiment Analysis, Crisis Communication, and Stakeholder Engagement in Lagos State, Nigeria

The integration of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in public relations (PR) practice has attracted growing scholarly and professional attention globally; however, its adoption and implications within Sub-Saharan African contexts remain significantly under-researched. This study investigates the extent to which AI-powered tools — particularly sentiment analysis platforms, automated media monitoring systems, and crisis communication technologies — are being adopted and utilised by public relations practitioners and government communication agencies in Lagos State, Nigeria. Grounded in the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) and the Situational Theory of Publics (STP), this study employs a mixed-methods research design, combining a structured survey of 215 PR practitioners across government, private, and non-governmental organisations in Lagos State with 20 in-depth interviews with senior communication officers. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and inferential tools, whilst qualitative data were subjected to thematic analysis. Findings reveal that whilst AI tool adoption is growing — with 61.4% of respondents reporting active usage — deployment remains largely tactical, concentrated in content creation and social media monitoring, whilst strategic applications such as predictive analytics and AI-driven crisis modelling remain underutilised. Key barriers include inadequate digital infrastructure, limited institutional AI literacy, budgetary constraints, and concerns about data privacy and algorithmic bias. The study also examines Lagos State Government's crisis communication response to the 2023 fuel subsidy removal protests as a case study demonstrating both the potentials and limitations of AI-assisted PR in an African urban governance context. The paper contributes theoretically and empirically to the nascent literature on AI in PR practice in the Global South and offers actionable recommendations for practitioners, communication policymakers, and institutional decision-makers in Nigeria and comparable African settings.