A recent study conducted by Strategic & Middle East revealed that the number of internet users in the countries of Northern Africa and the Middle East reached 218.5 million people by the end of 2020, which corresponds to a growth of 17% for the year compared to 2019. Given that the total population in the region is 384 million people, almost 57% of the population of the Middle East and Northern Africa are active internet users.
According to the study, in 2020 internet users in the region spent on average almost 8 hours online each day, which is significantly higher than the global average. This is attributed to the widespread availability of mobile devices and access to high-speed internet.
The study also found that YouTube is the most popular platform for consuming video content, with more than 35% of users preferring to watch videos in Arabic. Additionally, social networks such as Facebook and Instagram remain the most popular among users in the studied region, playing a key role in their daily communication.
One of the conclusions of the study was that content in the Arabic language remains in demand among users, reflecting the needs and interests of the local audience.
