1987 Edition

Administrative divisions

eight governorates under centrally appointed officials

Boundary disputes

separated from Israel by 1949 Armistice Line; West Bank and Gaza Strip are Israeli occupied with status to be determined

Branches

King holds balance of power; Prime Minister exercises executive authority in name of King; Cabinet appointed by Jordan (continued) King and responsible to parliament; bicameral parliament with House of Representatives, dissolved by King in February 1976, and reconvened in January 1984, following national elections; Senate last appointed by King in January 1984; secular court system based on differing legal systems of the former Transjordan and Palestine; law Western in concept and structure; Sharia (religious) courts for Muslims, and religious community council courts for non-Muslim communities; desert police carry out quasi-judicial functions in desert areas

Capital

Amman

Climate

mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to March)

Coastline

26 km

Communists

party actively repressed, membership estimated at less than 500

Comparative area

about the size of Minnesota

Environment

lack of natural water resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification

Government leaders

HUSSEIN I, King (since August 1952); Zayd al-RIFA‘I, Prime Minister (since April 1985)

Land boundaries

1,770 km total (before 1967 war)

Land use

4% arable land; .5% permanent crops; 1% meadows and pastures; .5% forest and woodland; 94% other; includes .5% irrigated

Legal system

based on Islamic law and French codes; constitution adopted 1952; judicial review of legislative acts in a specially provided High Tribunal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Member of

Arab League, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB—Islamic Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, ITU, NAM, OIC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO

National holiday

Independence Day, 25 May

Note

the war between Israel and the Arab states in June 1967 ended with Israel in control of the West Bank; as stated in the 1978 Camp David Accords and reaffirmed by the President’s 1 September 1982 peace initiative, the final status of the West Bank and Gaza Strip, their relationship with their neighbors, and a peace treaty between Israel and Jordan are to be negotiated among the concerned parties; Camp David further specifies that these negotiations will resolve the location of the respective boundaries; pending the completion of this process, it is US policy that the final status of the West Bank and Gaza Strip has yet to be determined

Special notes

none

Suffrage

universal adult at age 20 Political parties and leaders: political party activity illegal since 1957

Terrain

mostly high desert plateau in east; Great Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of Jordan River

Territorial sea

3 nm

Total area

on page 276) Boundary representation is not necessarily authoritative

97,740 km?; land area: 97,180 km?

Type

constitutional monarchy

Ethnic divisions

98% Arab, 1% Circassian, 1% Armenian

Infant mortality rate

62/1,000 (1983)

Labor force

580,000 (1983 est.); 20% agriculture, 20% manufacturing and mining

Language

Arabic (official); English widely understood among upper and middle classes

Life expectancy

61.7

Literacy

about 71%

Nationality

noun—Jordanian(s), adjective—Jordanian

Organized labor

about 10% of labor force

Population

2,761,695 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 3.65%

Religion

95% Sunni Muslim, 5% Christian

Official name

Hashemite Kingdom of

Agriculture

vegetables, fruits, olive oil, wheat; self-sufficient in few foodstuffs

Aid

US, including Ex-Im (1970-84), $1.3 billion; Western (non-US) countries, ODA and OOF (1970-84), $988 million; Communist countries (1970-85), $71 million

Budget

total revenues, $1,836 million; current expenditures, $1,267 million; capital expenditures, $675 million (1984)

Electric power

972,000 kW capacity; 2,840 million kWh produced, 1,080 kWh per capita (1986)

Exports

$789 million (f.0.b., 1985); fruits and vegetables, phosphates, fertilizers

Fiscal year

calendar year

GNP

$4.9 billion, $1,900 per capita; 2.0% real growth rate (1984)

Imports

$2,733 million (c.i.f., 1985); crude oil, petroleum, textiles, capital goods, motor vehicles, foodstuffs

Major industries

phosphate mining, petroleum refining, cement production, light manufacturing

Military transfers

US (FY70-85), $2.2 billion

Monetary conversion rate

.35 Jordanian dinar=US$1 (November 1986)

Natural resources

phosphates, potash, shale oil

Airfields

21 total, 19 usable; 14 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m, 14 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 1 with runways 1,2202,489 m

Civil air

28 major transport aircraft

Highways

6,332 total; 4,887 paved, 1,495 gravel and crushed stone

Pipelines

crude oil, 209 km

Ports

1 major (Al ‘Aqabah)

Railroads

817 km 1.050-meter gauge, single track

Telecommunications

adequate system of radio-relay, cable, and radio; 81,500 telephones (8 per 100 popl.); 3 AM, 2 FM, 24 TV stations; | Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT station, 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT station; 1 ARABSAT station; coaxial cable and radio-relay to Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Syria; radio-relay to Lebanon inactive

Branches

Jordan Arab Army, Royal Jordanian Air Force, Royal Jordanian Coast Guard

Military manpower

males 15-49, 639,000; 456,000 fit for military service; 36,000 reach military age (18) annually