Around 78 percent of children under 18 years old in the Sultanate of Oman use social networking applications, according to the latest survey by the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI).
YouTube is most popular among children (82 percent), while 81 percent of households follow children on social media networks. Around 50 percent of children use social media platforms for educational purposes.
Several heads of households (52 percent) feel that their children use social media.
Some 96 percent of citizens used one of the social media applications in the last three months, of which 99 percent used WhatsApp, followed by YouTube users (75 percent), Instagram users (69 percent), and Facebook users (20 percent).
Around 53 percent of individuals believe that using social media applications has had a positive impact on their lives, compared to only 10.1 percent who felt that it had a negative impact.
Around 53 per cent of individuals believe that using social media applications has had a positive impact on their lives, compared to only 10.1 per
Internet use among the age group (18–29 years) increased from just 48 percent in 2015 to 96 percent in 2023.
Citizens spend three and a half hours daily on the WhatsApp application, two and a half hours on X, three hours on Instagram, and two and a half hours on Youtube.
The positive effects of social media include providing useful information and knowledge, communicating with acquaintances and friends, and reviewing news and developments in events.
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