Introduction

	King Abdullah,then prince, with the Late King Hussein

For most of its history since independence from British administration in 1946, Jordan was ruled by King Hussein Bin Talal (1953-1999). A pragmatic ruler, he successfully navigated competing pressures from the major powers (US, USSR, and UK), various Arab states, Israel, and a large internal Palestinian population, through several wars and coup attempts. In 1989 he resumed parliamentary elections and gradually permitted political liberalization. And in 1994, a formal peace treaty was signed with Israel.

King Abdullah II - the eldest son of King Hussein and Princess Muna - assumed the throne following his father's death in February 1999. Since then, he has consolidated his power and undertaken an aggressive economic reform program. Jordan acceded to the World Trade Organization in 2000, and began to participate in the European Free Trade Association in 2001. After a two-year delay, parliamentary and municipal elections took place in the summer of 2003. The prime minister and government appointed in October 2003 declared their commitment to accelerated economic and political reforms and the new cabinet includes an unprecedented three women as ministers.

Geography

	Jordanian flag

Location: Situated in the Middle East, in the south-western part of Asia. Except for a very short stretch of coast along the Gulf of Aqaba in the south, Jordan is landlocked. Geographic Coordinates: 31 00 N, 36 00 E

Land Boundaries:
Total: 1,635 km
Border Countries: Iraq (east; 181 km), Israel (west; 238 km), Saudi Arabia (south; 744 km), Syria (north; 375 km), West Bank (west; 97 km)
Coastline: 26 km

Area:
Total: 92,300 sq km
Water: 329 sq km
Land: 91,971 sq km

Climate: Mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April)

	Wadi Rum

Terrain: Mostly desert plateau in east (80% of Jordan’s land). In the west is the Jordan River Valley, bordered to the east by steep highlands. A great Rift Valley separates the east and west banks of the Jordan River.

Elevation Extremes:
Lowest Point: Dead Sea -408 m
Highest Point: Jabal Ram 1,734 m

Natural Resources: phosphates, potash, shale oil

Land Use:
Arable Land: 2.8%
Permanent Crops: 1.5%
Other: 95.6% (1998 est.)
Irrigated Land: 750 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural Hazards: droughts; periodic earthquakes

People

	Jordanian traditional costume

Jordan has been home to many successive civilizations. Each group introduced new elements into the country’s religion, language, and architecture. Except for the Crusader period, Jordan has remained under Arab rule from the 7th century to the beginning of the 16th century, by which time the Turkish Ottoman Empire had expanded to include many Arab Middle Eastern countries.

The population represents a mixture of traditions. To be a Bedouin, or to come from Bedouin stock, is a matter of pride for many Jordanians. Bedouins are known as hospitable people of strong character, with a deep sense of family and tribal pride.

Refugee influxes have rendered the population evenly divided between “East Bankers” and Jordanians of Palestinian origin. The vast majority of Palestinian refugees, however, were given Jordanian citizenship.

Population: 5,611,202 (July 2004 est.)

• Population Density: 56.4 per sq km.


• Population Distribution: 38% in Amman; 34% in Irbid and Zarqa; and 28% in the remainder of Jordan


• Age Structure (2004 est.):

*   0-14 years: 35.2% (male 1,009,604; female 967,645)
*   15-64 years: 61.1% (male 1,829,984; female 1,598,141)
*   65 years and over: 3.7% (male 100,896; female 104,932)

• Median Age: 22.2 years (male 22.8 years; female 21.5) (2004 est.)


• Population Growth Rate: 2.8 (2004 est.)


• Birth Rate: 29 per 1000 population (2004 est.)


• Death Rate: 5 per 1000 population (2004 est.)


• Total Fertility Rate: 3.7 (2002)


• Infant Mortality Rate: 18.11 per 1000 births (2004 est.)


• Ethnic Groups: Arab 98%; Circassian 1%; Armenian 1%


• Religions: Sunni Muslim 92%, Christian 6% (majority Greek Orthodox, but some Greek and Roman Catholics, Syrian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, and Protestant denominations), other 2% (several small Shi'a Muslim and Druze populations) (2001 est.)


• Literacy: 91.3% (male 95.9%; female 86.3%) (2003 est.)

Language

Arabic (official), English is widely spoken and understood throughout Jordan.

Economy

	Merchants in downtown Amman

Jordan is a small Arab country with inadequate supplies of water and other natural resources such as oil. Debt, poverty, and unemployment are fundamental problems, but since assuming the throne in 1999 King Abdullah II has undertaken some broad economic reforms in a long-term effort to improve living standards.

Jordan in the past three years has worked closely with the IMF, practiced careful monetary policy, and made significant headway with privatization. The government also has liberalized the trade regime sufficiently to secure Jordan's membership in the WTO (2000), an association agreement with the EU (2001), and a free trade agreement with US (2000). These measures have helped improve productivity and have put Jordan on the foreign investment map. The U.S. led war in Iraq in 2003 negatively impacted Jordan’s economy, given Jordan’s extensive trade relations with Iraq and dependence on Iraq for discounted oil (worth $300-$600 million per year). Several Gulf nations, as well as the United States, have provided temporary aid to overcome those challenges. Other ongoing challenges include fiscal adjustment to reduce the budget deficit, broader investment incentives to promote job-creating ventures, and the encouragement of tourism.

Economic Indicators (2003):

• GDP Growth Rate: 3.3%


• Fiscal Deficit/GDP: 5.1%


• Inflation: 2.3%


• External Debt: $7.7 billion


• Trade Deficit: $2.6 billion


• Unemployment: 15%


• Poverty Rate: 11%

Government

	The Jordanian Parliament

Government Type: constitutional monarchy with a bicameral legislature

Capital: Amman

Administrative Divisions: 12 governorates – Ajlun, Al 'Aqabah, Al Balqa', Al Karak, Al Mafraq, Amman, At Tafilah, Az Zarqa', Irbid, Jarash, Ma'an, Madaba

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

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

Executive Branch:
Chief of State: King Abdullah II (since 7 February 1999); Crown Prince Hamzah (half brother of the monarch, born 29 March 1980)
Head of Government: Prime Minister Faisal Al-Fayez (since 22 October 2003)
Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the monarch
Elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch

Legislative Branch:
Bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-'Umma consists of the Senate (Majlis al-Ayan) (55 seats; members appointed by the monarch from designated categories of public figures; members serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives (Majlis al-Nuwaab) (110 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms; note - six seats are reserved for women and are allocated by a special electoral panel if no women are elected)
Elections: House of Representatives - last held 17 June 2003 (note: the House of Representatives has been convened and dissolved by the monarch several times since 1974; in November 1989, the first parliamentary elections in 22 years were held; political parties were not legalized until 1992; the 2001 elections were delayed until 2003)

References: CIA World Factbook, HM King Abdullah Official Website, Department of Statistics

Links

The Hashemite Royal Family

His Majesty King Abdullah II

Her Majesty Queen Rania Al Abdullah

His Late Majesty King Hussein I

HM Queen Noor Al Hussein

HRH Crown Prince Hamzah bin al Hussein

HRH Prince Hassan Bin Talal

HRH Princess Basma Bint Talal

Jordanian Ministries

Prime Ministry

Ministry of Administrative Development

Ministry of Agriculture

Ministry of Education

Ministry of Finance

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Ministry of Health

Ministry of Higher Education

Ministry of Industry & Trade

Ministry of Information and Communications Technology

Ministry of Labor

Ministry of Planning & International Cooperation

Ministry of Social Development

Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities

Ministry of Water and Irrigation

Jordanian Government Departments

Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority

Audit Bureau

Central Bank of Jordan

Civil Service Bureau

Department of Statistics

Institute of Diplomacy

Insurance Commission

Jordan Customs Department

Jordan Export Development & Commercial Centers Corporation

Jordan Institute for Public Administration

Jordan Institution for Standards and Metrology (JISM)

Jordan Investment Board

Jordan National Information Center

Jordan Securities Commission

Jordan Tourism Board

Jordanian National Competitiveness Team

Municipality of Greater Amman

National Center for Human Resources Development

National Health Network

The Parliament

Petra Region Authority

Securities Depository Center

Telecommunications Regulatory Commission

Jordanian Media

Al Rai' Newspaper

Al Ghad Newspaper

Ad Dustour Newspaper

Al Arab Al Yawm Newspaper

Al Anbat Newspaper

Ammannet Internet Radio

Jordan Information Center

Jordan Radio & Television

Jordan Times Newspaper

Petra News Agency

Al-Sijill Weekly

The Star Newspaper

Information About Jordan

AME Info

Arab Net

CIA World Factbook

Economy, Development, & Commerce

Al Riyadi

Amman Chamber of Commerce

Amman Chamber of Industry

Amman Stock Exchange

Amman World Trade Center

Federation of Jordanian Chambers of Commerce

Free Zones Corporation

Investment Promotion

Investors Association of Amman Industrial Estate

Irada - Enhanced Productivity Centers

Jordan Export Development & Commercial Center Corporation (JEDCO)

Jordan's Foreign Trade Policy

Jordan Industrial Estates Corporation

Jordan Loan Guarantee Corporation

Jordan Micro Credit Company - Tamweelcom

Jordan Mortgage Refinance Company

Jordan National Agenda

Jordan's Reach Initiative

Jordan - US Free Trade Agreement

Jordan Upgrading and Modernization Programme (JUMP)

Jordan Vision 2020

Microfund for Women

SIYB Microfinance Training

Turath

Jordanian Education & Research Institutes

Al Al-Bayt University

Al-Balqa' Applied University

Al-Urdun Al-Jadid Research Center

Arab Thought Forum

Center for Strategic Studies

Hashemite University

Injaz (Arabic)

Institute of Banking Studies

Jordan University

Jordan University of Science & Technology

Princess Sumaya University College for Technology

Yarmouk University

Jordanian Non-Profit Organizations

Al-Hussein Society for the Habilitation/Rehabilitation of the Physically Challenged

Center for the Study of the Built Environment

General Union for Voluntary Societies

Higher Population Council

Jordan River Foundation

Jordanian National Commission for Women (JNCW)

Jordanian National Forum for Women

Princess Basma Resource Center for Women

The Queen Zein Al Sharaf Institute for Development

Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature

Jordanian Professional Associations & Societies

The Association of Banks in Jordan

Business & Professional Women Amman

Intaj

International Advertising Association – Jordan Chapter

Investors Association of Amman Industrial Estates

Jordan Engineers Association

Jordan Exporters Association

The Jordan Exporters and Producers Association for Fruit and Vegetables (JEPAFV)

Jordan Hotel Association

Jordan Inbound Tour Operators Association (JITOA)

Jordan Tour Guides Association

Jordan Trade Association

Jordanian American Business Association

The Jordanian Association of Manufacturers of Pharmaceuticals and Medical Appliances

Jordanian Business Association

The Young Entrepreneurs Association

Jordanian Laws

Companies Law

Constitution of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

Investment Promotion Law

Jordanian Commercial Laws

Law of Election to the House of Deputies

National Charter

The Political Parties Law