LinkedIn launches in Arabic: Why it matters

LinkedIn, the world’s largest online professional network with more than 347 million members, yesterday launched its Arabic version.

The Middle East and North Africa (Mena) is a fast growing region for LinkedIn, growing from five million members in October 2012 when the company opened their local office in Dubai, to more than 14 million today.

The launch of Arabic – the first bi-directional language on LinkedIn – brings the total number of languages available to 24.

“The launch of LinkedIn Arabic is a significant step towards strengthening the Arabic media sector, developing local content and nurturing Arabic talent. LinkedIn Arabic will enable greater communication among individuals and major companies within the region and support career building efforts with the ability to search for opportunities that fit with their skills and potential,” said Noura Al Kaabi, CEO of the Media Zone Authority - Abu Dhabi (twofour54).

“Arabic is spoken by over 300 million of the global population, more than French and Portuguese, yet it is underrepresented on the Internet. As speakers of this great language, it is our duty to be proactive, collaborate and strengthen the content available online in our language, and to initiate new sites and platforms, such as LinkedIn Arabic, that will cater for Arab youth and the generations to come. I commend those driving the development of LinkedIn’s Arabic initiative and wish them every success in developing this socially-significant, Arabic-led tool,” she added.

“LinkedIn has been working with us to match talent in the Kingdom with the right opportunity, and with Arabic, this benefit can be rolled-out to a much wider member base,” said Adel M. Fakeih, Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Labour.

“LinkedIn will continue to be a useful tool for us as we use technology to communicate the need for nationals to up-skill themselves and take advantage of the strong economic climate and significant job-creation in the Kingdom. Being a part of a global network also helps youth identify the key demand areas, and build their qualifications accordingly,” he added.

“We already have more than 14 million members here in the Mena region using LinkedIn in English. The launch of an Arabic version will provide a more relevant experience to our members and customers in the region,” said Ali Matar, Head of LinkedIn Mena Talent Solutions.

“This will open up opportunities for hundreds of millions of Arabic speaking professionals to connect and engage with other professionals and employers across the world, and for companies to find and attract the best talent, connect their brand with our audience, and engage with their customers,” continued Matar.

LinkedIn Arabic

New members can now sign up for LinkedIn in Arabic by visiting the site and registering a new account. LinkedIn members who have been using the site in English can switch their language settings to Arabic, should they wish to do so, by following this link [linkd.in/changelanguage]

Follow Emirates 24|7 on Google News.