Geography
Area: 89,342 sq. km. (34,495 sq. mi.).
Cities: Capital--Amman (pop. 1.9 million). Other cities--Irbid
(272,681), Az-Zarqa (472,830).
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective--Jordanian(s).
Population (2006, per IMF): 5.63 million.
Religions (est.): Sunni Muslim 95%, Christian 4%, other 1%.
Languages: Arabic (official), English.
Education (2006, according to Jordan's Department of Statistics): Literacy--90.9%.
Health (2003): Infant mortality rate--19/1,000. Life
expectancy--71 yrs.
Ethnic groups: Mostly Arab but small communities of Circassians,
Armenians, and Kurds.
Work force (1.3 million, of which 260 thousand are registered guest
workers): public sector 17%, services 36%, manufacturing 20%, education
12%, health and social services 10%, primary industries 5%.
Unemployment rate (2006): 13% of economically active Jordanians.
Government
Type: Constitutional monarchy.
Independence: May 25, 1946.
Constitution: January 8, 1952.
Branches: Executive--King (chief of state), Prime Minister
(head of government), Council of Ministers (cabinet). Legislative--bicameral
National Assembly (appointed Senate, elected Chamber of Deputies). Judicial--civil,
religious, special courts.
Political parties: Wide spectrum of parties legalized in 1992.
Suffrage: Universal at 18.
Administrative subdivisions: Twelve governorates--Irbid, Jarash,
Ajloun, al-'Aqaba, Madaba, al-Mafraq, al-Zarqa, Amman, al-Balqa,
al-Karak, al-Tafilah, and Ma'an.
Economy
Nominal GDP (2006): $14.3 billion.
Annual real growth rate (2006): 6.4%.
Per capita GDP (2006): $2,533.
Natural resources: Phosphate, potash.
Agriculture: Products--fruits, vegetables, wheat, olive oil,
barley, olives. Land--10% arable; 5% cultivated.
Industry (26.5% of GDP in 2006): Types--phosphate mining,
manufacturing, electricity and water; cement and petroleum production,
and construction.
Trade: Exports (2006)--$5.17 billion: phosphates, potash,
garments, fertilizers, pharmaceutical products, agricultural products. Major
markets--U.S., Iraq, India, Saudi Arabia, U.A.E., Syria, Israel,
Kuwait. Imports (2006)--$11.46 billion: crude petroleum and
derivatives, vehicles, machinery and equipment, cereals, fabrics and
textiles. Major suppliers-- Saudi Arabia (mainly crude oil and
derivatives), EU, China, U.S., Egypt, South Korea, Japan, Turkey.
Note: From 1949 to 1967, Jordan
administered the West Bank. Since the 1967 war, when Israel took
control of this territory, the United States has considered the West
Bank to be territory occupied by Israel. The United States believes
that the final status of the West Bank can be determined only through
negotiations among the concerned parties based on UN Security Council
Resolutions 242 and 338.
PEOPLE
Jordanians are Arabs, except for a few small communities of
Circassians, Armenians, and Kurds who have adapted to Arab culture. The
official language is Arabic, but English is used widely in commerce and
government. About 70% of Jordan's population is urban; less than 6% of
the rural population is nomadic or semi-nomadic. Most of the population
lives where rainfall can support agriculture. Approximately 1.7 million
registered Palestinian refugees and other displaced persons reside in
Jordan, many as citizens.
HISTORY
The land that became Jordan is part of the richly historical Fertile
Crescent region. Around 2000 B.C., Semitic Amorites settled around the
Jordan River in the area called Canaan. Subsequent invaders and
settlers included Hittites, Egyptians, Israelites, Assyrians,
Babylonians, Persians, Greeks, Romans, Arab Muslims, Christian
Crusaders, Mameluks, Ottoman Turks, and, finally, the British. At the
end of World War I, the League of Nations awarded the territory now
comprising Israel, Jordan, the West Bank, Gaza, and Jerusalem to the
United Kingdom as the mandate for Palestine and Transjordan. In 1922,
the British divided the mandate by establishing the semiautonomous
Emirate of Transjordan, ruled by the Hashemite Prince Abdullah, while
continuing the administration of Palestine under a British High
Commissioner. The mandate over Transjordan ended on May 22, 1946; on
May 25, the country became the independent Hashemite Kingdom of
Transjordan. It ended its special defense treaty relationship with the
United Kingdom in 1957.
Transjordan was one of the Arab states which moved
to assist Palestinian nationalists opposed to the creation of Israel in
May 1948, and took part in the warfare between the Arab states and the
newly founded State of Israel. The armistice agreements of April 3,
1949 left Jordan in control of the West Bank and provided that the
armistice demarcation lines were without prejudice to future
territorial settlements or boundary lines.
In 1950, the country was renamed the Hashemite
Kingdom of Jordan to include those portions of Palestine annexed by
King Abdullah I. While recognizing Jordanian administration over the
West Bank, the United States maintained the position that ultimate
sovereignty was subject to future agreement.
Jordan signed a mutual defense pact in May 1967
with Egypt, and it participated in the June 1967 war between Israel and
the Arab states of Syria, Egypt, and Iraq. During the war, Israel
gained control of the West Bank and all of Jerusalem. In 1988, Jordan
renounced all claims to the West Bank but retained an administrative
role pending a final settlement, and its 1994 treaty with Israel
allowed for a continuing Jordanian role in Muslim holy places in
Jerusalem. The U.S. Government considers the West Bank to be territory
occupied by Israel and believes that its final status should be
determined through direct negotiations among the parties concerned on
the basis of UN Security Council Resolutions 242 and 338.
The 1967 war led to a dramatic increase in the
number of Palestinians living in Jordan. Its Palestinian refugee
population--700,000 in 1966--grew by another 300,000 from the West
Bank. The period following the 1967 war saw an upsurge in the power and
importance of Palestinian resistance elements (fedayeen) in Jordan. The
heavily armed fedayeen constituted a growing threat to the sovereignty
and security of the Hashemite state, and open fighting erupted in June
1970.
No fighting occurred along the 1967 Jordan River
cease-fire line during the October 1973 Arab-Israeli war, but Jordan
sent a brigade to Syria to fight Israeli units on Syrian territory.
Jordan did not participate in the Gulf war of 1990-91. In 1991, Jordan
agreed, along with Syria, Lebanon, and Palestinian representatives, to
participate in direct peace negotiations with Israel sponsored by the
U.S. and Russia. It negotiated an end to hostilities with Israel and
signed a peace treaty in 1994. Jordan has since sought to remain at
peace with all of its neighbors.
Principal Government Officials
Chief of State--King Abdullah bin al-Hussein II
Prime Minister--Marouf Bakhit
Minister of Defense--Marouf Bakhit
Foreign Minister--Abdelelah al-Khatib
Ambassador to the U.S.--Prince Zeid bin Ra'ad
Ambassador to the UN--Charge d'affaires Bashir Zubi
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POLITICAL CONDITIONS
King Hussein ruled Jordan from 1953 to 1999, surviving a number of
challenges to his rule, drawing on the loyalty of his military, and
serving as a symbol of unity and stability for both the East Bank and
Palestinian communities in Jordan. In 1989 and 1993, Jordan held free
and fair parliamentary elections. Controversial changes in the election
law led Islamist parties to boycott the 1997 elections. King Hussein
ended martial law in 1991 and legalized political parties in 1992.
King Abdullah II succeeded his father Hussein
following the latter's death in February 1999. Abdullah moved quickly
to reaffirm Jordan's peace treaty with Israel and its relations with
the U.S. Abdullah, during his first year in power, refocused the
government's agenda on economic reform.
Jordan's continuing structural economic
difficulties, burgeoning population, and more open political
environment led to the emergence of a variety of political parties.
Moving toward greater independence, Jordan's Parliament has
investigated corruption charges against several regime figures and has
become the major forum in which differing political views, including
those of political Islamists, are expressed. In June 2001, the King
dissolved Parliament. Parliamentary elections were held in June 2003,
and municipal elections were held in July 2003. The King appointed the
current Prime Minister, Marouf Bakhit, in December 2005. Bakhit and his
cabinet have set as their goal the continued legislative implementation
of a ten-year reform plan, known as the National Agenda, drafted by a
royal commission in 2005. The King also charged the new cabinet with
strengthening Jordan's security following the November 2005 suicide
hotel bombings in Amman that killed 60.
ECONOMY
Jordan is a small country with limited natural resources. The country
is currently exploring ways to expand its limited water supply and use
its existing water resources more efficiently, including through
regional cooperation. Jordan also depends on external sources for the
majority of its energy requirements. During the 1990s, its crude
petroleum needs were met through imports from neighboring Iraq. Since
early 2003, oil has been provided by some Gulf Cooperation Council
member countries. In addition, a natural gas pipeline from Egypt to
Jordan through the southern port city of Aqaba is now operational. The
pipeline has reached northern Jordan and construction to connect it to
Syria and beyond is underway.
Under King Abdullah, Jordan has undertaken a
program of economic reform. The government has taken the initiative to
gradually eliminate fuel subsidies, pass legislation targeting
corruption, and begin tax reform. It has also worked to liberalize
trade, gaining access to the World Trade Organization (WTO) in 2000,
signing an Association Agreement with the European Union (EU) in 2001,
and securing the first bilateral Free Trade Agreement between the U.S.
and an Arab country in 2001. Since 2000, exports of light manufactured
products, principally textiles and garments manufactured in the
Qualifying Industrial Zones (QIZ) that enter the United States tariff
and quota free, have been driving economic growth. Jordan exported $6.9
million in goods to the U.S. in 1997, when two-way trade was $395
million; according to the U.S. International Trade Commission, it
exported $1.42 billion in 2006, with two-way trade at $2.07 billion.
The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the United
States that went into effect in December 2001 will phase out duties on
nearly all goods and services by 2010. The agreement also provides for
more open markets in communications, construction, finance, health,
transportation, and services, as well as strict application of
international standards for the protection of intellectual property. In
1996, Jordan and the United States signed a civil aviation agreement
that provides for "open skies" between the two countries, and a
U.S.-Jordan treaty for the protection and encouragement of bilateral
investment entered into force in 2003. More information on the FTA is
available on www.jordanusfta.com.
Such developments hold considerable promise for
diversifying Jordan's economy away from its traditional reliance on
exports of phosphates and potash, overseas remittances, and foreign
aid. The government has emphasized the information technology (IT) and
tourism sectors as other promising growth sectors. The low tax and low
regulation Aqaba Special Economic Zone (ASEZ) is considered a model of
a government-provided framework for private sector-led economic growth.
Jordan is classified by the World Bank as a "lower
middle income country." The per capita GDP, as reported by the
International Monetary Fund (IMF), was $2,533 for 2006. According to
Jordan's Department of Statistics, 13% of the economically active
Jordanian population residing in Jordan was unemployed in 2006.
Education and literacy rates and measures of social well-being are
relatively high compared to other countries with similar incomes.
Jordan's population growth rate has declined in recent years and is
currently 2.3% as reported by the Jordanian government. One of the most
important factors in the government's efforts to improve the well-being
of its citizens is the macroeconomic stability that has been achieved
since the 1990s. The rate of inflation in 2006 was 6.3%; the currency
has been stable with an exchange rate fixed to the U.S. dollar since
1995 at JD 0.708-0.710 to the dollar. In 2006, Jordan significantly
reduced its debt to GDP ratio to 73.2% of GDP.
While pursuing economic reform and increased
trade, Jordan's economy will continue to be vulnerable to external
shocks and regional unrest. Without calm in the region, economic growth
seems destined to stay below its potential.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
Jordan has consistently followed a pro-Western foreign policy and
traditionally has had close relations with the United States. These
relations were damaged by support in Jordan for Iraq during the first
Gulf war. Although the Government of Jordan stated its opposition to
the Iraqi occupation of Kuwait, popular support for Iraq was driven by
Jordan's Palestinian community, which favored Saddam as a champion
against Western supporters of Israel.
Following the first Gulf war, Jordan largely
restored its relations with Western countries through its participation
in the Middle East peace process and enforcement of UN sanctions
against Iraq. Relations between Jordan and the Gulf countries improved
substantially after King Hussein's death. Following the fall of the
Iraqi regime, Jordan has played a pivotal role in supporting the
restoration of stability and security to Iraq. The Government of Jordan
has facilitated the training of over 50,000 Iraqi police cadets at a
Jordanian facility near Amman.
Jordan signed a nonbelligerency agreement with
Israel (the Washington Declaration) in Washington, DC, on July 25,
1994. Jordan and Israel signed a historic peace treaty on October 26,
1994, witnessed by President Clinton, accompanied by Secretary
Christopher. The U.S. has participated with Jordan and Israel in
trilateral development discussions in which key issues have been
water-sharing and security; cooperation on Jordan Rift Valley
development; infrastructure projects; and trade, finance, and banking
issues. Jordan also participates in multilateral peace talks. Jordan
belongs to the UN and several of its specialized and related agencies,
including the World Trade Organization (WTO), the International
Meteorological Organization (IMO), Food and Agriculture Organization
(FAO), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and World Health
Organization (WHO). Jordan also is a member of the World Bank,
International Monetary Fund (IMF), Organization of the Islamic
Conference (OIC), Nonaligned Movement, and Arab League.
Since the outbreak of the Intifada in September
2000, Jordan has worked to maintain lines of communication between the
Israelis and the Palestinians to counsel moderation and to return the
parties to negotiations of outstanding permanent status issues.
During summer 2006, Jordan provided considerable
relief supplies to Lebanon and has supported U.S. efforts to generate
international security assistance for Lebanese national forces.
U.S.-JORDANIAN RELATIONS
Relations between the U.S. and Jordan have been close for over four
decades. A primary objective of U.S. policy has been the achievement of
a comprehensive, just, and lasting peace in the Middle East.
U.S. policy seeks to reinforce Jordan's commitment
to peace, stability, and moderation. The peace process and Jordan's
opposition to terrorism parallel and indirectly assist wider U.S.
interests. Accordingly, through economic and military assistance and
through close political cooperation, the United States has helped
Jordan maintain its stability and prosperity.
Since 1952, the United States has provided Jordan
with economic assistance totaling more than $9 billion ($1.3 billion in
loans and $7.7 billion in grants), including funds for development
projects, health care, education, construction to increase water
availability, support for microeconomic policy shifts toward a more
completely free market system, and both grant and loan acquisition of
U.S. agriculture commodities. These programs have been successful and
have contributed to Jordanian stability while strengthening the
bilateral relationship. U.S. military assistance--provision of material
and training--is designed to meet Jordan's legitimate defense needs,
including preservation of border integrity and regional stability.
Jordan signed a Threshold Agreement with the Millennium Challenge
Corporation (MCC) in October 2006, and was subsequently deemed by the
MCC to be eligible for a Compact Agreement in recognition of the
country's progress on economic, social, and political reform indicators.
GOVERNMENT
Jordan is a constitutional monarchy based on the constitution
promulgated on January 8, 1952. Executive authority is vested in the
King and his Council of Ministers. The King signs and executes all
laws. His veto power may be overridden by a two-thirds vote of both
houses of the National Assembly. He appoints and may dismiss all judges
by decree, approves amendments to the constitution, declares war, and
commands the armed forces. Cabinet decisions, court judgments, and the
national currency are issued in his name. The King, who may dismiss
other cabinet members at the prime minister's request, appoints the
council of ministers, led by a prime minister. The cabinet is
responsible to the Chamber of Deputies on matters of general policy and
can be forced to resign by a two-thirds vote of "no confidence" by that
body.
Legislative power rests in the bicameral National
Assembly. The number of deputies in the current Chamber of Deputies is
110, with a number of seats reserved for various religions,
ethnicities, and women. The Chamber, elected by universal suffrage to a
4-year term, is subject to dissolution by the King. The King appoints
the 55-member Senate for a 4-year term. Parliamentary elections are
scheduled to be held in the fall of 2007.
The constitution provides for three categories of
courts--civil, religious, and special. Administratively, Jordan is
divided into 12 governorates, each headed by a governor appointed by
the King. They are the sole authorities for all government departments
and development projects in their respective areas.
Principal U.S. Officials
Ambassador--David
M. Hale
Deputy Chief of Mission--Daniel Rubinstein
Political Affairs--David Greene
Economic Affairs--Natalie Brown
Consular Affairs--Rena Bitter
Management Affairs--Perry Adair
Public Affairs--Phillip Frayne
Commercial Counselor--Sheryl Maas
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