Arab Social Media Report

The Arab Social Media Report Series is produced by the Dubai School of Government's Governance and Innovation Program. It is a recurring study that explores growth and usage trends of social media in the Arab region, through the analysis of Facebook and Twitter users in all 22 Arab countries, as well as Iran, Israel, and Turkey.

Each issue of the Arab Social Media Report Series highlights a specific theme related to social media, covering diverse topics such as general usage trends, its impact on civil movements, and its role in Arab women's empowerment. It also studies the potential of using Web 2.0 applications for increasing collaboration and knowledge sharing among government entities, citizens, and the private sector.

Its initial focuses included but were not limited to:

• Penetration trends of social networking services in the Arab region
• Growth rate, including demographic and gender breakdowns
• Sociopolitical factors which affect adoption of tools in different Arab countries
• Impact on citizen engagement and social inclusion, as well as innovation and entrepreneurship

Editions

Edition #6: Citizen Engagement and Public Services in the Arab World: The Potential of Social Media (June 2014)

Aimed to focus on the impact of social media use on citizen engagement and public service delivery in the Arab region".

Edition #5: Transforming Education in the Arab World: Breaking Barriers in the Age of Social Learning (June 2013)

Analyzes patterns, demographic breakdowns, and usage trends of social media platforms in the Arab region, as well as assesses the impact of social media on education and life-long learning in the region.

Edition #4: Social Media in the Arab World: Influencing Societal and Cultural Change? (July 2012)

Assessed the shift in regional trends, wherein the societal impact of social media usage changed from "if" to "how", "why", and "what's next". Findings addressed the impact of social media on freedom of expression and media consumption behaviors, to its empowerment of youth and women, and its role in popular civic movements. Analyzed Facebook and Twitter, as in previous studies, and added LinkedIn.

Edition #2: Arab Social Media Report: The Role of Social Media in Arab Women’s Empowerment (February 2011)

Focused on the role of social media in Arab women's empowerment, conducted as a collaborative effort between the Governance and Innovation Program and the Gender and Public Policy Program at the Dubai School of Government. It addressed the following main questions:

• What are the factors contributing to the low level of social media use among Arab women, as compared to men’s usage and to the global female average?
• Do Arab women perceive social media as useful to their needs?
• What are the usage trends?
• Can social media potentially increase women’s civic participation in the Arab world and contribute to their political and economic empowerment?

Edition #1: Facebook Usage: Factors and Analysis (January 2011)

This report analyzed data on Facebook users in 22 Arab countries, plus Iran and Israel. Many of the more detailed demographic breakdowns of the study, including those related to age and gender, exclude Syria and Sudan, due to US technology sanctions.

Key findings:

• Annual Growth Rate
  Between January 2010 to December 2010, the number of Facebook users rose from 11,978,300 to 21,361,863 -- a 78% annual growth rate. With around 4.7 million Facebook users, Egypt constitutes about 22% of total users in the region.

• Facebook Penetration
  The UAE is the top Arab country in terms of Facebook penetration to percentage of the population (at 45%), as well as among the top 10 in the world, alongside countries like Iceland (#1), Hong Kong (#2), US (#8), and Australia (#10). A larger view of the 22 countries studied put Israel just behind the UAE with 43% penetration, followed by Bahrain and Qatar at about 34%. Lebanon and Kuwait followed at 23% and 21% respectively, and Somalia and Iran ranked lowest at merely 0.08% and 0.17%, respectively. By the end of 2010, the country average for Facebook user penetration in the Arab region was 5.94%.

• Age Breakdown
  Youth between the ages of 15 and 29 make up 75% of Facebook users in the Arab region, and more generally, comprise around one-third of the region's internet population. The UAE is the most balanced in terms of adult and youth Facebook users, with 45% of users over 30 and 55% between 15 and 29. Qatar and Kuwait follow with similar numbers, while countries like Somalia, Palestine, and Morocco rank lowest, at around 16% over 30 and 84% between 15 and 29.

• Gender Breakdown
  An average male to female ratio of 2:1, compared to almost 1:1 globally. Lebanon is the most gender-balanced of the Arab countries, at 45% female to 55% male users, followed closely by Bahrain, Jordan and Tunisia, while at the other end of the spectrum, Facebook users in Somalia and Yemen are overwhelmingly male, at 15% female and 85% male in Somalia, and 19% female and 81% male in Yemen.

• Social Media Uptake & Political Events
  There is a direct correlation between political events and the uptake of social media. During the civil movements in Tunisia and Egypt during December 2010 and January 2011, the proportion of Tunisian citizens connected through Facebook increased by 8% during the first two weeks of January, and the usage shifted from being merely social in nature to becoming primarily political. From 2010 December 20 to 2011 January 5, the number of Facebook users remained unchanged, holding at 1,820,880; between 2011 January 5 and 2011 January 17, the number of users increased from 1,820,880 to 1,970,200.

• Factors That Influence Uptake
  The study analyzed the different Arab countries by way of the following factors and discovered:
  
  • Digital Access Index (DAI): A composite representing the overall ability of individuals in a country to access and use new ICTs, on a scale from 0-1
  • Internet penetration: Found that high internet penetration does not necessarily correlate with high Facebook penetration
  • Income (FDP per capita)
  • Internet freedom
  • Global Gender Gap Index
  • Human Development Index (HDI)

Facebook Users & Country Population in the Arab World

Country	Number of Facebook Users	Population	Facebook Penetration (%)
Algeria	1,413,280	35,422,589	3.99%
Bahrain	276,580	807,131	34.27%
Comoros	6,240	691,351	0.90%
Djibouti	46,040	879,053	5.25%
Egypt	4,634,600	84,474,427	5.49%
Iraq	397,140	31,466,698	1.26%
Jordan	1,104,340	6,472,392	17.06%
Kuwait	629,700	3,050,744	20.64%
Lebanon	983,380	4,254,583	23.11%
Libya	260,400	6,545,619	3.98%
Mauritania	40,000	3,365,675	1.19%
Morocco	2,446,300	32,381,283	7.55%
Oman	219,320	2,905,114	7.55%
Palestine	474,400	4,409,392	10.76%
Qatar	512,060	1,508,322	33.95%
Saudi Arabia	3,213,420	26,245,969	12.24%
Somalia	6,940	9,133,124	0.08%
Sudan	319,624	43,192,438	0.74%
Syria	241,859	22,505,091	1.07%
Tunisia	1,820,880	10,373,957	17.55%
UAE	2,135,960	4,707,307	45.38%
Yemen	179,400	24,255,928	0.74%

External Links

• Arab Social Media Report, ArabSocialMediaReport.com.