Caracas, April 30 (teleSUR-RHC)-- Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro is one of the world's most followed heads of state on Twitter, according to a study.

With 2.34 million followers, Maduro is also one of the top five most followed Latin American leaders on the social network, according to the 2015 Twiplomacy Study released Tuesday.

U.S President Barack Obama won the top spot as the most followed world leader, with just under million followers. However, Maduro beat Obama in terms of average retweets, receiving a “phenomenal” 3,198 retweets per tweet on average, according to the study.

Comparatively, Obama is retweeted on average 1,210 times. The most retweeted world leader, Pope Francis, has a retweet average of 9,929.

According to the study, Twitter has become an “essential communication tool for governments.” “Governments which put more financial and human resources into their digital communications are often the ones who are the most effective,” the study concluded.

Maduro's predecessor, late former President Hugo Chavez, was the first Venezuelan head of state to build a large Twitter following, and use the social network as a platform to discuss national issues. Chavez used Twitter to deliver messages on topics ranging from high politics to sport.