Online Trends in Arab Region

The Arab World Online: Trends in Internet Usage in the Arab Region

Over the past 15 years, the Arab region has witnessed major technology-led transformations which changed the norms of doing business, practicing governance and carrying out development efforts in the region. With more than 125 million individuals using the Internet in the Arab region, and more than 53 million actively using social networking technologies, the DSG Governance and Innovation Program in partnership with Bayt.com conducted a regional survey to examine internet usage trends in the Arab region. This white paper examines trends across four dimensions: 1. Access to the internet and internet-enabled devices, 2. Quality and quantity of time spent online, 3. Frequency of internet usage, 4. Attitudes and trends toward social media.

Introduction:

Since its commercialization and institutionalization in the 1990s the internet has transformed the ways in which we learn, socialize, do business and govern. Today, there are an estimated 2.5 billion people connected via the World Wide Web around the world, in addition to 9 billion “things” connected to the Internet. The internet has been described as the single most important invention of the 21st century and as an equalizer that facilitates access to information and resources. Additionally, with more than 125 million Internet users in the region; and more than 53 million of them actively using social media today, social connections have been greatly influenced by the internet. The proliferation of ubiquitous social networking technologies is creating new frontiers for governments, businesses and societies. Once again, the internet is re-shaping societies and economies in the Arab region in new ways1. Just as individuals have become dependent on the internet to supplement communications and social activity, the economy has been affected by the internet in nearly every sector. The internet has made “hard-to-find data” accessible and transformed...