Radisson Hotel Group is aiming to ramp up its presence in West and Central Africa by 50% by 2030. With a portfolio of 29 hotels and more than 5,000 rooms in operation and under development, Radisson is looking to build on the success of its expansion strategy in 2023.
In the past 12 months, Radisson signed five new hotels, adding more than 1,000 rooms to its portfolio in West and Central Africa.
These signings included market debuts in Gambia with Radisson Blu Beach Resort & Spa, Banjul and Radisson Hotel Benin City in Nigeria. The signing of Radisson Collection Hotel & Conference Center, Abuja; Radisson Blu Hotel, Abuja CBD and Radisson RED Lagos VI further strengthened Radisson’s position in Nigeria, doubling the group’s development pipeline within a year and expanding the Nigerian portfolio to 12 hotels and more than 1,700 rooms.
West and Central Africa has become important markets for the group’s development across the continent, Radisson said in a statement. The group strengthened its position in Nigeria in 2023 and ventured into Gambia with its core brand, Radisson Blu.
Four out of five signings are under construction, said Erwan Garnier, senior director, development, Africa at Radisson Hotel Group. “Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Senegal, Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of Congo remain the six countries to develop this region with a clear strategy for city-wide growth in major African capitals, financial centers and tourist destinations.”
Radisson is also focusing on large-scale expansion in eight cities in West and Central Africa — Abuja, Lagos, Accra, Abidjan, Dakar, Yaoundé, Douala and Kinshasa. The group’s development strategy for West and Central Africa focuses on business hotels, resorts, serviced apartments and mixed-use projects, Garnier added.
Radisson maintained its growth momentum in 2023 across Africa and signed eight new hotels, which added over 1,600 rooms to its portfolio. Fueled by this expansion, Radisson is on track to achieve 150 properties across Africa in the next five years, up from its existing 100 hotels.
In the past three years, Radisson emerged as one of the fastest-growing hotel groups in Africa, with 20 property openings in the continent. This has set a record for the company, with respect to the realization of its pipeline into openings, and resulted in a 15% annual growth on its African portfolio.
As a global hotel group, Radisson operates in EMEA and Asia Pacific and has more than 1,320 hotels in operation and under development across over 90 countries.