According to the latest statistics released by market research firm International Data Corporation (IDC), the year-on-year growth rate posted by the tablet market in Middle East and Africa (MEA) in 2012 surpassed expectations; with the total tablet shipments for the fourth quarter touching a total of 1.36 million units.

IDC - which is one of the leading global market intelligence and advisory firms for the information technology and telecommunications markets - said that overall year-on-year growth witnessed by the MEA tablet market last year was a whopping 90 percent.

The key reasons behind the astounding growth rate of the MEA tablet market include new low-cost tablet models; reduced costs by tablet manufacturers; and an overall increase in tablet demand from the customers. Moreover, with there being an increasing interest in tablets as an educational device, it is being projected that the tablet market all across the MEA region will further witness strong growth in the future.

Noting that, as of now, tablets are largely used as "entertainment devices," research analyst Victoria Mendes - from IDC's Personal Computing, Systems and Infrastructure Solutions division - said that IDC projects a "bigger demand for tablets in the corporate segment" in the coming years.

Elaborating further, Mendes said: "In particular, we expect OEMs to use the enhanced features and capabilities of the Windows 8 platform to lure their existing corporate clients into adopting tablets for their organizations."