President Paul Kagame and his Kenyan counterpart Uhuru Kenyatta have been ranked among the top 50 world leaders who actively use Twitter. The latest social media ranking of world leaders was done in a survey dubbed “Twiplomacy.” The survey shows that more than two-thirds (67.8 per cent) of heads of state and government have personal accounts on the social network. The survey was conducted by Burson-Marsteller, an international public relations and communications firm, to find out the extent to which world leaders connect on the social network. President Kenyatta (@Ukenyatta) is Africa’s most followed leader with 456,209 followers, with President Kagame (@PaulKagame) second with 404,332 followers. Others top leaders in the survey include Uganda’s Prime Minister Amama Mbabazi, Foreign Affairs minister Louise Mushikiwabo and South African President Jacob Zuma. The study analysed 643 government accounts in 161 countries. With 75 per cent of all her tweets being replies, Mushikiwabo came fourth worldwide and third in the continent in the category of the most conversational leaders on the social media. The survey also revealed that 77 per cent of African governments are on the social media. Pope Francis (@Pontifex) is the most influential world leader on Twitter with his tweets mostly in Spanish being retweeted on average more than 10,000 times each, while US President Barack Obama topped the list of most followed leaders globally with 48 million followers. For many diplomats, Twitter is said to have become a powerful channel for digital diplomacy and 21st century statecraft. Gilbert Rwabigwi, the director of Ejo Social Media, a firm involved with social media marketing and management, recently told The New Times that the presence of leaders and policymakers on social media should be encouraged as it provides an avenue for connection with the citizens. He added that the avenue provides a chance where the public can lobby to challenge policies.
