Former International Criminal Court (ICC) spokesperson Fadi El Abdallah has joined communications consultancy APO Group as chief strategic adviser for reputation and crisis communications.
This as the firm establishes a new division targeting organisations facing reputational risks across Africa.
El Abdallah, who served as the ICC’s spokesperson and head of public affairs for 15 years, will advise companies, governments, financial institutions and other organisations on managing public scrutiny, disinformation and reputational crises.
The new division will offer crisis response, executive advisory, preparedness planning, reputation recovery and crisis monitoring services.
During his tenure at the ICC, El Abdallah handled media relations and public communication during high-profile legal proceedings, including war crimes trials.
He also dealt with disinformation campaigns and advised the court’s leadership on communications in a legally sensitive environment.
APO Group founder and chairman Nicolas Pompigne-Mognard said the division would address what he described as a gap in reputation and crisis communications services in Africa.
“Reputation and crisis communications are among the most under-served disciplines in Africa. For 15 years, Fadi managed institutional reputation during coordinated disinformation campaigns, sanctions crises, and war crimes trials, before a global audience and under permanent legal constraint,” said Pompigne-Mognard.
The company plans to combine strategic advice with its existing media distribution and communications operations across the continent.
Chief executive Bas Wijne said the division would focus on implementing communications strategies across multiple African markets, rather than limiting its work to advisory services.
“What makes this division different is that we do not only advise, we execute. A strategy that sits on paper is worthless when a narrative is moving across twelve markets in three languages overnight.” Said Bas Wijne.
“Fadi brings the strategic framework, and APO Group brings the infrastructure to deploy it across all 54 African markets in real time. That combination does not exist anywhere else in Africa.”
Speaking on his appointment a, Fadi El Abdallah said reputation and crisis communications in Africa are at an inflection point, as Governments and organisations face reputational threats that are faster, more complex and more consequential than ever before.
“What has been missing is a firm with both the strategic depth to advise at the highest level on reputation and crisis, and the infrastructure to deliver at scale. That is exactly what APO Group offers, and it is why I am here.”
He said his appointment would bring strategic crisis management experience to a firm with an established presence in African media markets.
APO Group said the new division would serve multinational companies, African businesses, governments and other organisations seeking support in preparing for and responding to reputational crises.
