Mideast leaders are some of the world’s most active on Twitter

Political leaders in the Middle East are increasingly using Twitter to interact with the public, UAE daily The National reported citing a recent study.

According to the Twiplomacy study released by public relations consultancy firm Burson-Marsteller, Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati is the most engaging among Arab leaders, as one-fifth of his tweets are replies to what followers post.

The study assessed 264 Twitter accounts belonging to heads of state from 125 countries, of which 21 were from the Mena region.

“What we see from this study is that leaders within the Middle East and the Gulf in particular, are some of the most engaged from around the world on Twitter,” Taufiq Rahim, a political analyst living in Dubai, was quoted as saying by The National.

Rahim added that UAE Foreign Minister Abdullah bin Zayed is another great example of an engaged Twitter leader.

“He tweets almost exclusively and regularly in Arabic, demonstrating in a desire to connect with local audiences.”

Account of UAE vice president and ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, which recently crossed the one million-follower margin, was among Twitter accounts assessed by the study.