30 Million Pilgrims by 2030: Hajj Ministry Partners with OYO Hotels to Harness Technology for Quality Living Spaces

OYO Hotels, the global hospitality company, which is South Asia and India’s largest, one of China’s top five and world’s fastest growing chain of hotels, homes and spaces, announced its partnership with the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. As a part of this partnership, OYO will provide the ministry access to OYO’s technology suite, which includes OYO OS and Krypton technologies, to enable them to deliver an elevated hospitality experience in the holy cities of Mecca and Medina.  With this initiative, the company has affirmed its commitment to support Saudi Arabia’s vision in 2030 to increase the number of Hajj and Umrah pilgrims to 30 million annually, and leverage technology to help ensure that thousands of pilgrims have access to quality, affordable accommodations during their visit to the holy shrine. The MoU was signed in the presence of His Excellency Dr. Mohammad Saleh bin Taher Benten, Honorable Minister of Hajj and Umrah and Ritesh Agarwal, Founder & Group CEO, OYO Hotels and Homes.

OYO’s signature OS technology suite is an operating system that will assist the Ministry in managing inventory, procurement, as well as, provide for express check-ins and check-outs in the accommodations under its purview. The OS further offers apps for housekeeping and audits while introducing solutions for multiple accommodation management aspects like expense management, staff training and engagement along with performance management for the hotel staff. All these facets come together to deliver technology-driven efficiency for living spaces. Krypton is OYO’s mobile audit app that enables the timely audit of properties while assuring an excellent guest experience.

Under the MoU, OYO will work with the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah in enhancing, implementing and auditing the aspirational standards for affordable and quality accommodations in existing buildings in the holy city of Makkah, through the use of technology and proprietary applications. In the process, OYO’s technology suite group aims to create over 3,000 local employment opportunities and upgrade over 15,000 rooms.

Commenting on the developments, Ritesh Agarwal, Group CEO and Founder, OYO Hotels, said, “We are proud and honored to have been selected by the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah to provide our best-in-class technology solutions as part of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s commendable efforts to implement their 2030 vision. By leveraging our hotel operating competencies in support of vision 2030 and harnessing OYO’s world-class OS and Krypton systems towards upgrading living spaces for pilgrims, we want to be a key partner to the Ministry in helping welcome 30 million Umrah and Hajj pilgrims to the Kingdom and assuring a comfortable and peaceful stay as they journey to the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah.”

Governor of the General Investment Authority (SAGIA), HE Ibrahim bin Abdul Rahman Al-Omar added, “It is also noteworthy that OYO is one of the first Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia and a SoftBank Vision Fund backed company to start operations successfully in Saudi Arabia, with the support of HRH Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Public Investment Fund and Saudi Arabia’s General Investment Authority (SAGIA). The company obtained its foreign investment license from SAGIA a few months ago and plans to invest $50 million in Saudi Arabia.”

Commenting on the MoU, Mr. Ziyad Al Ashaikh, Head of Saudi Arabia for Softbank Investment Advisors, said, “In delivering on its mission to provide good quality accommodation at affordable prices, OYO has grown exponentially to become the largest hotel chain in South Asia. We are delighted to support the company in making its commitment to invest create beautiful and affordable living spaces, as well as, investing in long-term job creation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia”.

Manu Midha, Region Head, OYO Hotels, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, said, “We are honored and deeply thankful to the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah for providing us with the  opportunity to support Vision 2030 and manage quality accommodations for pilgrims to the holy cities.”

OYO is honored to have been conferred an opportunity to serve the pilgrims coming to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and is committed to helping the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah ensure that the millions of faithful pilgrims who undertake this journey of a lifetime, are able to experience a comfortable, affordable and tranquil stay in the warmth of Saudi hospitality.

About OYO Group:

OYO South Asia’s largest, one of China’s top three, and the world’s fastest growing chain of hotels, homes, and spaces. It has footprints in more than 500+ cities across India, China, Malaysia, Nepal, the UK, UAE , Indonesia and now the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Globally, OYO currently has over 13,000 franchised or leased hotels and over 3000 homes as a part its chain, and over 450,000 rooms. OYO is backed by leading investors, the SoftBank Group, Greenoaks Capital, Sequoia India, Lightspeed India, Hero Enterprise, DSG, and China Lodging Group. For more information, log on to https://www.oyorooms.com/