Marrakech – Akdital, Morocco’s largest private hospital operator, has opened its first hospital in Saudi Arabia, its first move outside the Moroccan market. The facility, Akdital Hospitals Riyadh Olaya, began receiving patients on Monday in the Al Olaya district at the center of the Saudi capital.
The opening came after the Saudi Ministry of Health granted the group a license to operate. The hospital has 140 beds and covers more than 17,600 square meters, bringing over 50 specialized care units together under one roof.
Its clinical layout includes an integrated medical imaging and diagnostic center, 11 operating rooms, more than 30 critical care beds, and an 18-bed emergency department.
The hospital covers cardiology, oncology-hematology, gastroenterology, ophthalmology, dialysis, and diabetes care. A dedicated women’s health track brings together maternity services, delivery rooms, and fertility treatment, including in vitro fertilization.
The Riyadh Olaya hospital grew out of the integration of the former Abdul Rahman Al Mishari hospital. Founded in 1987, the establishment was renamed following a memorandum of understanding signed in July 2025 between Akdital and Dr Abdul Rahman Al Mishari for Development. At the time, the group counted more than 140 beds, over 500 staff, and 44 consultation clinics at the site.
Riyadh now serves as the launch point for a wider rollout across the kingdom. The opening translates a broader plan under which Akdital intends to invest SAR 5.3 billion ($1.4 billion) by 2030, lifting its Saudi capacity to 1,000 beds.
In June, the group announced the purchase of land in Riyadh for a third Saudi hospital. The expansion reaches beyond the capital. Also in June, Akdital signed a contract to fit out, equip, and manage the Aladwani hospital in Jeddah. The building already stands and will hold up to 120 beds, with service planned for the first quarter of 2027.
The move brings the total number of hospitals the group plans to operate in Saudi Arabia to four, with two projects in Riyadh, one in Mecca, and one in Jeddah.
The Mecca project centers on Awwad Albishri Hospital, a 120-bed facility in the heart of the holy city. In December 2025, Akdital signed a memorandum of understanding to acquire a majority stake in the establishment, subject to regulatory and operational approvals. Its central location gives it strategic positioning in a district marked by high patient traffic and healthcare needs tied to urban density and the seasonal flow of pilgrims.
To support this growth, Akdital has reinforced the financial structure behind its international arm. In August, it announced that Arab Invest had taken a 15% stake in its Riyadh-based international holding.
The group established Akdital International in the capital last year to manage its companies in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Tunisia, and it plans to open that capital to investment funds at around 30% to diversify funding alongside bonds, bank loans, and self-financing. Across its foreign markets, Akdital aims to build a network of more than 2,000 beds by 2030.
At home, the group has developed a network of 45 health facilities across 25 cities since 2011. It ranks as the first healthcare group listed on the Casablanca Stock Exchange and presents itself as the leading private healthcare operator in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
Akdital frames its Saudi entry within a health sector in deep transformation, coinciding with the country’s drive under Vision 2030 to expand hospital capacity and open the field to new operators and investors.
