Report on social media usage in the Middle East shows huge potential for development

The report, which relies on more than 200 sources and references, highlights that 79% of Arab youth rely on various social platforms as their main source of daily news. The report also shows that the fan base of some of the top influencers on TikTok grew by 65% ​​between February and August 2020.

As remote work has become widely adopted due to the spread of the epidemic and social isolation measures, companies have seen a significant increase in their use of instant messaging applications such as WhatsApp and virtual meeting applications such as Zoom and Teams.

Technology companies, social media and messaging apps still top the list in terms of value, with Google, WhatsApp and YouTube all ranking in the top 10 in terms of users in the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Egypt.

The report also shows that the UAE has the highest number of social media users in the region, with an average of 10 accounts per person on various social media platforms. As of October 2020, Egypt has more than 44 million Facebook users, ranking first in the region and ninth in the world. On the same platform, 13 markets including Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Egypt have increasing numbers of users.

Statistics show that today's digital economy has become an important part of the macroeconomic resources of many countries, and the growth of the digital economy has enabled Arab countries to achieve a 22% increase in gross national income, but the contribution of the digital economy does not exceed 4% of the Arab gross national income. The report lists many reasons for this decline, the most striking of which is the lack of digital content in Arabic, which does not exceed 5%.

As of 2020, online advertising accounts for 70% of total advertising spending in the Middle East and North Africa. According to a MENA report, nearly a quarter of the total advertising budget in 2019 went to social media channels, mainly YouTube, Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram.

Additionally, global KOL spending (marketing through influencers) has doubled over the past two years to more than $14 billion , but has remained flat in the Middle East.

middle East