Arab Women are digitally savvy, confirms new survey commissioned by anaZahra.com

71% of polled women belong to a social networking site; 66% connect daily with friends online; 45% read digital articles and magazines

A new study confirms that Arab women are highly proficient in their use of the internet: 71% of the women participating in the study belong to a social networking site; 66% connect with friends online on daily basis; 83% access the internet from home; 34% spend online at least 10 hours a week, and 45% read articles and magazines online.

The findings come from a study commissioned by anaZahra.com, a new portal dedicated to the modern Arab woman launching next month, created by Abu Dhabi Media Company (ADMC).

The study, which was conducted by YouGovSiraj during April this year, was designed to provide insight and understanding about the evolving online attitudes and behaviors of Arab women across the Middle East, and to enable a unique opportunity for dialogue with a panel of 1,251 regionally representative women, from the GCC (United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, and Bahrain), Levant (Jordan, Syria and Lebanon) and North Africa (Egypt).

Online is definitely becoming a women’s space in the Middle East, as an overwhelming majority of Arab women use popular online applications for social networking, and digital media for keeping themselves informed and entertained. 34% from the women surveyed spend at least 10 hours a week online surfing the internet and visiting websites (this excludes time spent for work purposes or emailing). Lebanon is leading the way with 68% of those surveyed spending more than seven hours online weekly, followed by UAE with 55%, Kuwait 53%, Egypt 50%, Qatar 47%, Saudi Arabia and Jordan 44%, Bahrain 42%, Syria 34% and lastly by Oman with 30%.

“There is no doubt the world is going digital and this results in major changes in our daily habits, from socializing to entertainment,” said Ricky Ghai, Executive Director of Digital Media at ADMC. “This is especially true when it comes to modern Arab women, who have become more and more interested and involved in the digital space.

“Digital communication fulfills unique needs and offers audiences more engagement. We feel it’s the opportune time for us to provide women in the Middle East with a platform which allows them to engage and connect with one another,” concluded Ghai.

The survey also provides insight into the preferred activities of Arab women online. 37% of the women surveyed are active on social networking sites and participate in blogs and forums (such as Facebook, twitter, hi5), while 45% are reading articles and magazines online.

Arab women are highly involved in the social networking space, with Facebook ranking as the leading social networking site among Arab women: 91% in Lebanon, followed by 80% in Egypt, 78% in the UAE, 70% in Jordan, 68% in Kuwait and Qatar, 66% in Bahrain, 64% in KSA, 55% in Oman, and 45% in Syria.

“Women are an important audience segment for content creators and marketers: they are expressive and they are connected.  They like sharing with their friends and family and they are eager to engage with other women. Women’s community sites are a key growth sector online globally,” said Zoya Sakr, Managing Director of anaZahra.com. “We’re very excited to launch our new portal, anaZahra.com. This is the new destination for Arab women”.

anaZahra.com aims to be the home for modern Arab women who are passionate about fashion and beauty, interested in celebrity news and various lifestyle topics, and who look for greater interaction and a sense of community.  The portal will feature popular editors, contributors, bloggers and some of the most influential personalities from the Arab world and abroad. anaZahra.com will also offer advertisers a fresh platform to connect women with strong brand experiences online.