Instagram announces major update

With over 63 million users, the Mena region is one of Instagram's fastest growing communities.

Social media platform Instagram on Wednesday announced the introduction of right-to-left functionality for its Arabic audience.

In a move made specifically to support languages written from right to left, and Arabic speakers in the Instagram's global community, the company spent the first half of this year reconfiguring the app, the Facebook-owned entity said.
 

While visual language has made Instagram one of the most inclusive and diverse platforms in the world, captions, comments and written text give people a unique way to express themselves and build relationships with other people in the community.

The update will allow even more Arabic speakers to use Instagram to connect with the people and interests that matter to them.

Mike Krieger, Instagram's co-founder, commented: "I'm proud of our efforts to make Instagram one of the most inclusive and diverse platforms in the world. With this update we hope even more Arabic speakers are able to use Instagram to connect with the people and interests that matter to them."

Priya Patel, Instagram's Regional Product Market Manager in MENA commented: "With over 63 million users, the MENA region is one of Instagram's fastest growing communities and we're committed to providing the right tools for local users to communicate and connect with one another. Today we're announcing that Arabic language will now be available on Instagram, where users will be able to write from right to left for the first time. This is a huge opportunity for businesses to become even more connected with their consumers, as we know that the community wants to hear from them in the local language - in fact, 50 per cent of the community follow a brand. With this update, businesses in the region can connect with the Arabic-speaking community for the first time and drive business results."