A recent article by David George-Cosh in The National discusses upcoming upgrades from Etisalat and du which are set to make Internet connections in the UAE up to seven times faster thanks to new cables. Beyond the obvious benefits of allowing all of us here in the UAE to download faster and watch streaming videos, investments in internet connectivity are a positive development for the trends toward greater internet usage and consumption, already one of the highest in the region.

In fact, last month the Dubai School of Government’s Governance and Innovation Program released an interesting report that showcases the state of internet and Facebook penetration across the GCC. The UAE is already far ahead of the rest of the region with 75% internet penetration, and its 45% Facebook penetration (ie 45% of the population has a Facebook account), places the UAE in the top 10 countries in the world. An investment in better connectivity surely won’t hurt this trend and points to even greater possibilities for growth as uses are empowered to surf faster and consume more.