Africa has found a new way to communicate and stay connected with others on their continent. In an area where news travels slow, and the accuracy of the stories is barely half reliable, Twitter user’s are finding the social networking tool invaluable.

A research study consisting of 500 of Africa’a most active tweeters titled, How Africa Tweets, reveals some interesting data about the phenomenon on the continent.

Over two thirds of those in the survey say that they use Twitter to monitor news. Surprisingly, half the Twitter accounts followed by African’s were based on the continent. And over a quarter of those also said they use Twitter to monitor job postings and employment opportunities.

The average age of Tweeter’s Worldwide is around 39. In Africa it is considerably younger ranging from 20 to 29 years old. Without a hardwired infrastructure available it should come as no surprise that well over half the Tweets came from wireless devices.

Another surprising fact that has come to light is that, despite the undeniable utility of Twitter, few political figures on the continent maintain a presence on the social network. One notable exception is Paul Kagame, Rwanda’s President. He is well known for his candid Twitter commentary.

The following African map supplied by Portland Media illustrates the origins of 11.5 million Tweets recorded from October, November, and December of 2011: