1996 Edition

Description

three equal horizontal bands of black (top), white, and green with a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bearing a small white seven-pointed star; the seven points on the star represent the seven fundamental laws of the Koran

Location

31 00 N, 36 00 E -- Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia Flag ----

Area

comparative area

slightly smaller than Indiana

land area

88,884 sq km

total area

89,213 sq km

Climate

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

Coastline

26 km

Environment

current issues

limited natural fresh water resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification

international agreements

party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Desertification, Law of the Sea

natural hazards

NA

Geographic coordinates

31 00 N, 36 00 E

International disputes

none

Irrigated land

570 sq km (1989 est.)

Land boundaries

border countries

Iraq 181 km, Israel 238 km, Saudi Arabia 728 km, Syria 375 km, West Bank 97 km

total

1,619 km

Land use

arable land

4%

forest and woodland

0.5%

meadows and pastures

1%

other

94%

permanent crops

0.5%

Location

Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia

Map references

Middle East

Maritime claims

territorial sea

3 nm

Natural resources

phosphates, potash, shale oil

Terrain

mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of the Jordan River

highest point

Jabal Ram 1,754 m

lowest point

Dead Sea -408 m

Age structure

0-14 years: 44% (male 949,822; female 903,043) 15-64 years: 53% (male 1,153,360; female 1,091,416) 65 years and over: 3% (male 57,783; female 56,728) (July 1996 est.)

Birth rate

36.67 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Death rate

3.95 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Ethnic divisions

Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1%

Infant mortality rate

31.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

Languages

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

Life expectancy at birth

female

74.45 years (1996 est.)

male

70.62 years

total population

72.48 years

Literacy

age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)

female

79.4%

male

93.4%

total population

86.6%

Nationality

adjective

Jordanian

noun

Jordanian(s)

Net migration rate

-6.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

Population

4,212,152 (July 1996 est.)

Population growth rate

2.65% (1996 est.)

Religions

Sunni Muslim 92%, Christian 8%

Sex ratio

all ages

1.05 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

at birth

1.06 male(s)/female

under 15 years

1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.02 male(s)/female

Total fertility rate

5.1 children born/woman (1996 est.)

Administrative divisions

8 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Balqa', Al Karak, Al Mafraq, 'Amman, At Tafilah, Az Zarqa', Irbid, Ma'an

Capital

Amman

Constitution

8 January 1952

Data code

JO

Diplomatic representation in US

chancery

3504 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008

chief of mission

Ambassador Fayiz A. TARAWNEH

telephone

[1] (202) 966-2664

Executive branch

cabinet

Cabinet was appointed by the king

chief of state

King HUSSEIN Bin Talal Al Hashimi (since 2 May 1953) is a constitutional monarch

head of government

Prime Minister Abd al-Karim al-KABARITI (since 4 February 1996) was appointed by the king

FAX

[1] (202) 966-3110

[962] (6) 820159

Flag

three equal horizontal bands of black (top), white, and green with a red isosceles triangle based on the hoist side bearing a small white seven-pointed star; the seven points on the star represent the seven fundamental laws of the Koran

House of Notables (Majlis al-A'ayan)

consists of a 40-member body appointed by the king from designated categories of public figures

House of Representatives

elections last held 8 November 1993 (next to be held NA November 1997); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (80 total) IAF 16, Jordanian National Alliance Party 4, Al-Yaqazah Party 2, Al-Watan Party 2, Al-'Ahd Party 2, Jordanian Arab Democratic Party 2, Al-Mustaqbal Party 1, Jordanian Arab Socialist Ba'th Party 1, Jordanian Democratic Progressive Party 1, Jordanian People's Democratic Party-Hashd 1, Jordanian Socialist Democratic Party 1, independents 47

note

the House of Representatives has been convened and dissolved by the king several times since 1974; in November 1989 the first parliamentary elections in 22 years were held

Independence

25 May 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration)

International organization participation

ABEDA, ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM, OIC, PCA, UN, UNAMIR, UNAVEM III, UNCRO, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIH, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNOMIL, UNPREDEP, UNPROFOR, UNRWA, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)

Judicial branch

Court of Cassation

Legal system

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

Legislative branch

bicameral National Assembly (Majlis al-'Umma)

Name of country

conventional long form

Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

conventional short form

Jordan

former

Transjordan

local long form

Al Mamlakah al Urduniyah al Hashimiyah

local short form

Al Urdun

National holiday

Independence Day, 25 May (1946)

Political parties and leaders

Al-'Ahd (Pledge) Party, 'Abd al-Hadi al-MAJALI, secretary general; Al-Ahrar (Liberals) Party, Ahmad al-ZU'BI, secretary general; Al-Taqaddumi (Progressive) Party, Fawwaz al-ZUBI, secretary general; Al-Watan (Homeland) Party, 'Akif al-FAYIZ; Al-Yaqazah (Awakening) Party, 'Abd al-Ra'uf al-RAWABIDAH, secretary general; Constitutional Jordanian Arab Front Party, Milhim al-TALL; Democratic Arab Islamic Movement Party-Du'a', Yusuf Abu BAKR, secretary general; Democratic Arab Unionist Party-Wad, Anis al-MU'ASHIR, secretary general; Islamic Action Front (IAF), Ishaq al-FARHAN, secretary general; Jordanian Arab Masses Party, 'Abd al-Khaliq SHATAT, secretary general; Jordanian Arab Socialist Ba'th Party, Taysir al-HIMSI, command first secretary; Jordanian Communist Party (JCP), Ya'qub ZAYADIN, secretary general; Jordanian Democratic Popular Unity Party, 'Azmi al-KHAWAJA, secretary general; Jordanian National Alliance Party, Mijhim al-KHURAYSHAH, secretary general; Jordanian People's Democratic Party-Hashd, Salim al-NAHHAS, secretary general; Jordanian Unionist Democratic Party, 'Isa MADANAT (secretary general), Ali AMIR (secretary general), Munis al-RAZZAZ (secretary general); Pan-Arab Action Front Party, Muhammad al-ZU'BI, secretary general; Popular Unity Party-the Unionists, Mustafa AL-'ISAWI, secretary general; Progress and Justice Party, 'Ali al-SA'D, secretary general; Progressive Arab Ba'th Party, Mahmud al-MA'AYITAH, command secretary; Al-Mustaqbal (Future) Party, Sulayman 'ARAR, secretary general; Jordanian Arab Partisans Party, Muhammad al-MAJALI, leader, Muhammad SHURAYDAH, secretary general

note

in 1995, the Jordanian Arab Democratic Party, the Jordanian Democratic Progressive Party, and the Jordanian Socialist Democratic Party merged to form the Jordanian Unionist Democratic Party

Suffrage

20 years of age; universal

Type of government

constitutional monarchy

US diplomatic representation

chief of mission

Ambassador Wesley W. EGAN, Jr.

embassy

Jabel Amman, Amman

mailing address

P. O. Box 354, Amman 11118 Jordan; APO AE 09892-0200

telephone

[962] (6) 820101

Agriculture

wheat, barley, citrus, tomatoes, melons, olives; sheep, goats, poultry

Budget

expenditures

$2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $640 million (1996 est.)

revenues

$2.5 billion

Currency

1 Jordanian dinar (JD) = 1,000 fils

Economic aid

recipient

ODA, $238 million (1993)

Economic overview

Jordan is a small Arab country with inadequate supplies of water and other natural resources such as oil and coal. Jordan benefited from increased Arab aid during the oil boom of the late 1970s and early 1980s, when its annual real GNP growth averaged more than 10%. In the remainder of the 1980s, however, reductions in both Arab aid and worker remittances slowed real economic growth to an average of roughly 2% per year. Imports - mainly oil, capital goods, consumer durables, and food - outstripped exports, with the difference covered by aid, remittances, and borrowing. In mid-1989, the Jordanian Government began debt-rescheduling negotiations and agreed to implement an IMF-supported program designed to gradually reduce the budget deficit and implement badly needed structural reforms. The Persian Gulf crisis that began in August 1990, however, aggravated Jordan's already serious economic problems, forcing the government to shelve the IMF program, stop most debt payments, and suspend rescheduling negotiations. Aid from Gulf Arab states, worker remittances, and trade contracted; and refugees flooded the country, producing serious balance-of-payments problems, stunting GDP growth, and straining government resources. The economy rebounded in 1992, largely due to the influx of capital repatriated by workers returning from the Gulf, but the recovery was uneven throughout 1994 and 1995. The government is implementing the reform program adopted in 1992 and continues to secure rescheduling and write-offs of its heavy foreign debt. Debt, poverty, and unemployment remain Jordan's biggest on-going problems.

Electricity

capacity

1,050,000 kW

consumption per capita

1,072 kWh (1993)

production

4.2 billion kWh

Exchange rates

Jordanian dinars (JD) per US$1 - 0.7090 (January 1996), 0.7005 (1995), 0.6987 (1994), 0.6928 (1993), 0.6797 (1992), 0.6808 (1991)

Exports

$1.7 billion (f.o.b., 1994)

commodities

phosphates, fertilizers, potash, agricultural products, manufactures

partners

India, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, EU, Indonesia, UAE

External debt

$6.9 billion (1995 est.)

Fiscal year

calendar year

GDP

purchasing power parity - $19.3 billion (1995 est.)

GDP composition by sector

agriculture

11%

industry

25%

services

64% (1994)

GDP per capita

$4,700 (1995 est.)

GDP real growth rate

6.5% (1995 est.)

Imports

$3.8 billion (c.i.f., 1994)

commodities

crude oil, machinery, transport equipment, food, live animals, manufactured goods

partners

EU, US, Iraq, Japan, Turkey

Industrial production growth rate

5.6% (1994 est.)

Industries

phosphate mining, petroleum refining, cement, potash, light manufacturing

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

3% (1995 est.)

Labor force

600,000 (1992)

by occupation

industry 11.4%, commerce, restaurants, and hotels 10.5%, construction 10.0%, transport and communications 8.7%, agriculture 7.4%, other services 52.0% (1992)

Unemployment rate

16% (1994 est.)

Branches

Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF; includes Royal Jordanian Land Force, Royal Naval Force, and Royal Jordanian Air Force); Ministry of the Interior's Public Security Force (falls under JAF only in wartime or crisis situations)

Defense expenditures

exchange rate conversion - $589 million, 8.2% of GDP (1996)

Manpower availability

males age 15-49

1,011,588

males fit for military service

721,460

males reach military age (18) annually

45,406 (1996 est.)

Radio broadcast stations

AM 5, FM 7, shortwave 0

Radios

1.1 million (1992 est.)

Telephone system

adequate telephone system

domestic

microwave radio relay, cable, and radiotelephone links

international

satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and 1 Arabsat; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Syria; microwave radio relay to Lebanon is inactive; participant in Medarabtel

Telephones

81,500 (1987 est.)

Television broadcast stations

8 and 1 TV receive-only satellite link

Televisions

350,000 (1992 est.) Defense

Airports

total

14

with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m

3

with paved runways over 3 047 m

10

with paved runways under 914 m

1 (1995 est.)

Highways

paved

5,680 km (including 1,712 km of expressways)

total

5,680 km

unpaved

0 km (1991 est.)

Merchant marine

total

3 bulk ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 41,960 GRT/67,515 DWT (1995 est.)

Pipelines

crude oil 209 km

Ports

Al'Aqabah

Railways

narrow gauge

676 km 1.050-m gauge; note - an additional 110 km stretch of the old Hedjaz railroad is out of use

total

676 km