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| Geography |
| Strategic location at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba and as the Arab country that shares the longest border with Israel and the occupied West Bank |
| Location: | Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia, between Israel (to the west) and Iraq |
| Geographic coordinates: | 31 00 N, 36 00 E |
| Area: | total: 89,342 sq km land: 88,802 sq km water: 540 sq km
Size comparison: slightly smaller than Indiana |
| Land Boundaries: | total: 1,635 km border countries: Iraq 181 km, Israel 238 km, Saudi Arabia 744 km, Syria 375 km, West Bank 97 km |
| Coastline: | 26 km |
| Maritime claims: | territorial sea: 3 nm |
| Climate: | mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April) |
| Terrain: | mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of the Jordan River |
| Elevation extremes: | lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Jabal Umm ad Dami 1,854 m |
| Natural resources: | phosphates, potash, shale oil |
| Land use: | arable land: 3.32% permanent crops: 1.18% other: 95.5% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: | 820 sq km (2008) |
| Natural hazards: | droughts; periodic earthquakes |
| Current Environment Issues: | limited natural freshwater resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification |
| International Environment Agreements: | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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| People |
| Population: | 6,508,271 (July 2011 est.) |
| Age structure: | 0-14 years: 35.3% (male 1,180,595/female 1,114,533) 15-64 years: 59.9% (male 1,977,075/female 1,921,504) 65 years and over: 4.8% (male 153,918/female 160,646) (2011 est.) |
| Median age: | total: 22.1 years male: 21.8 years female: 22.4 years (2011 est.) |
| Population growth rate: | 0.984% (2011 est.) |
| Birth rate: | 26.79 births/1,000 population (2011 est.) |
| Death rate: | 2.69 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.) |
| Net migration rate: | -14.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2011 est.) |
| Sex ratio: | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2011 est.) |
| Infant mortality rate: | total: 16.42 deaths/1,000 live births male: 16.98 deaths/1,000 live births female: 15.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2011 est.) |
| Life expectancy at birth: | total population: 80.05 years male: 78.73 years female: 81.45 years (2011 est.) |
| Total fertility rate: | 3.39 children born/woman (2011 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: | less than 0.1% (2001 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: | 600 (2007 est.) |
| HIV/AIDS - deaths: | fewer than 500 (2003 est.) |
| Nationality: | noun: Jordanian(s) adjective: Jordanian |
| Ethnic groups: | Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1% |
| Religions: | Sunni Muslim 92% (official), Christian 6% (majority Greek Orthodox, but some Greek and Roman Catholics, Syrian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, and Protestant denominations), other 2% (several small Shia Muslim and Druze populations) (2001 est.) |
| Languages: | Arabic (official), English (widely understood among upper and middle classes) |
| Literacy: | definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 89.9% male: 95.1% female: 84.7% (2003 est.) |
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| Government |
| Country name: | conventional long form: Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan conventional short form: Jordan local long form: Al Mamlakah al Urduniyah al Hashimiyah local short form: Al Urdun former: Transjordan |
| Government type: | constitutional monarchy |
| Capital: | name: Amman geographic coordinates: 31 57 N, 35 56 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins first Friday in April; ends last Friday in October |
| Administrative divisions: | 12 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); 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) |
| National holiday: | Independence Day, 25 May (1946) |
| Constitution: | 1 January 1952; amended many times |
| Legal system: | mixed legal system of civil law and Islamic religious law; judicial review of legislative acts in a specially provided High Tribunal |
| Suffrage: | 18 years of age; universal |
| Executive branch: | chief of state: King ABDALLAH II (since 7 February 1999); Crown Prince HUSSEIN (born 28 June 1994), eldest son of King ABDALLAH II head of government: Prime Minister Awn Shawkat KHASAWINAH (since 24 October 2011); Deputy Prime Minister Tawfiq KREISHAN (since 2 July 2011) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the monarch; note - on 1 February 2011 the King dismissed the cabinet and designated Marouf al-BAKHIT the new prime minister (For more information visit the World Leaders website ) elections: the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
| Legislative branch: | bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-'Umma consists of the Senate, also called the House of Notables or Majlis al-Ayan (60 seats; members appointed by the monarch to serve four-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies, also called the House of Representatives or Majlis al-Nuwaab (120 seats; members elected using a single, non-transferable vote system in multi-member districts to serve four-year terms); note - the new electoral law enacted in May 2010 allocated an additional 10 seats (6 seats added to the number reserved for women, bringing the total to 12; 2 additional seats for Amman; and 1 seat each for the cities of Zarqa and Irbid; unchanged are 9 seats reserved for Christian candidates, 9 for Bedouin candidates, and 3 for Jordanians of Chechen or Circassian descent elections: Chamber of Deputies - last held on 9 November 2010 (next scheduled in 2012); note - the King dissolved the previous Chamber of Deputies in November 2009, midway through the parliamentary term election results: Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - independents and other 120 (includes 12 seats filled by women's quota and 1 woman was directly elected); note - the IAF boycotted the election |
| Judicial branch: | Court of Cassation (Supreme Court) |
| Political parties and leaders: | Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party [Fuad DABBOUR]; Ba'ath Arab Progressive Party [Tayseer al-HAMSI]; Call Party [Mohammed Abu BAKR]; Democratic People's Party [Ablah al-ULBAH]; Democratic Popular Unity Party [Sa'ed DIAB]; Islamic Action Front or IAF [Hamzeh MANSOUR]; Islamic Center Party [Marwan al-FA'OURI; Jordanian Communist Party [Munir HAMARNEH]; Jordanian National Party [Mona Abu BAKR]; Jordanian United Front [Amjad al-MAJALI]; Life Party [Thaher 'AMROU]; Message Party [Hazem QASHOU]; National Constitution Party [Ahmed al-SHUNAQ]; National Current Party [Abd al-Hadi al-MAJALI]; National Movement for Direct Democracy [Mohammed al-QAQ] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders: | Anti-Normalization Committee [Hamzeh MANSOUR, chairman]; Higher Coordination Committee of Opposition Parties [Hamzeh MANZOUR]; Jordan Bar Association [Saleh al-ARMUTI, chairman]; Jordanian Press Association [Sayf al-SHARIF, president]; Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood [Dr. Hamam SAID, controller general] |
| International organization participation: | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, CICA, FAO, G-11, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, LAS, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, MONUSCO, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO |
| Diplomatic representation in the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Alia Hatough BOURAN chancery: 3504 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-2664 FAX: [1] (202) 966-3110 |
| Diplomatic representation from the US: | chief of mission: Ambassador Stuart E. JONES embassy: Abdoun, Amman mailing address: P. O. Box 354, Amman 11118 Jordan; Unit 70200, Box 5, DPO AE 09892-0200 telephone: [962] (6) 590-6000 FAX: [962] (6) 592-0121 |
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| Economy |
| Jordan's economy is among the smallest in the Middle East, with insufficient supplies of water, oil, and other natural resources, underlying the government's heavy reliance on foreign assistance. Other economic challenges for the government include chronic high rates of poverty, unemployment, inflation, and a large budget deficit. Since assuming the throne in 1999, King ABDALLAH has implemented significant economic reforms, such as opening the trade regime, privatizing state-owned companies, and eliminating most fuel subsidies, which in the past few years have spurred economic growth by attracting foreign investment and creating some jobs. The global economic slowdown, however, has depressed Jordan's GDP growth. Export-oriented sectors such as manufacturing, mining, and the transport of re-exports have been hit the hardest. The Government approved two supplementary budgets in 2010, but sweeping tax cuts planned for 2010 did not materialize because of Amman's need for additional revenue to cover excess spending. The budget deficit is likely to remain high, at 5-6% of GDP, and Amman likely will continue to depend heavily on foreign assistance to finance the deficit in 2011. Jordan's financial sector has been relatively isolated from the international financial crisis because of its limited exposure to overseas capital markets. Jordan is currently exploring nuclear power generation to forestall energy shortfalls. |
| GDP (purchasing power parity): | GDP (purchasing power parity): $34.53 billion (2010 est.) $33.49 billion (2009 est.) $32.73 billion (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars |
| GDP (official exchange rate): | GDP (official exchange rate): $27.53 billion (2010 est.) |
| GDP - real growth rate: | 3.1% (2010 est.) 2.3% (2009 est.) 7.6% (2008 est.) |
| GDP - per capita (PPP): | GDP - per capita (PPP): $5,400 (2010 est.) $5,300 (2009 est.) $5,300 (2008 est.) note: data are in 2010 US dollars |
| GDP - composition by sector: | agriculture: 3.4% industry: 30.3% services: 66.2% (2010 est.) |
| Labor force: | 1.719 million (2010 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation: | agriculture: 2.7% industry: 20% services: 77.4% (2007 est.) |
| Unemployment rate: | 12.5% (2010 est.) 12.9% (2009 est.) note: official rate; unofficial rate is approximately 30% |
| Population below poverty line: | 14.2% (2002) |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share: | lowest 10%: 3% highest 10%: 30.7% (2006) |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index: | 39.7 (2007) 36.4 (1997) |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices): | Inflation rate (consumer prices): 5% (2010 est.) -0.7% (2009 est.) |
| Investment (gross fixed): | Investment (gross fixed): 30.1% of GDP (2010 est.) |
| Budget: | revenues: $6.184 billion expenditures: $8.098 billion (2010 est.) |
| Public debt: | 63.2% of GDP (2010 est.) 64.8% of GDP (2009 est.) |
| Agriculture - products: | citrus, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, strawberries, stone fruits; sheep, poultry, dairy |
| Industries: | clothing, fertilizers, potash, phosphate mining, pharmaceuticals, petroleum refining, cement, inorganic chemicals, light manufacturing, tourism |
| Industrial production growth rate: | 2.5% (2010 est.) |
| Electricity - production: | 13.01 billion kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - consumption: | 11.3 billion kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - exports: | 323 million kWh (2008 est.) |
| Electricity - imports: | 224 million kWh (2008 est.) |
| Oil - production: | 88 bbl/day (2010 est.) |
| Oil - consumption: | 98,000 bbl/day (2010 est.) |
| Oil - exports: | 0 bbl/day (2009 est.) |
| Oil - imports: | 111,700 bbl/day (2009 est.) |
| Oil - proved reserves: | 1 million bbl (1 January 2011 est.) |
| Natural gas - production: | 250 million cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - consumption: | 3.1 billion cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - exports: | 0 cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - imports: | 2.85 billion cu m (2009 est.) |
| Natural gas - proved reserves: | 6.031 billion cu m (1 January 2011 est.) |
| Current account balance: | -$974.5 million (2010 est.) -$1.27 billion (2009 est.) |
| Exports: | $7.333 billion (2010 est.) $6.366 billion (2009 est.) |
| Exports - commodities: | clothing, fertilizers, potash, phosphates, vegetables, pharmaceuticals |
| Exports - partners: | US 15.6%, Iraq 15.4%, India 13.2%, Saudi Arabia 10.6%, UAE 4.3%, Syria 4% (2010) |
| Imports: | $12.97 billion (2010 est.) $12.5 billion (2009 est.) |
| Imports - commodities: | crude oil, machinery, transport equipment, iron, cereals |
| Imports - partners: | Saudi Arabia 19.8%, China 10.8%, Germany 6.1%, US 5.6%, Egypt 4.5%, South Korea 4.2% (2010) |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: | $13.4 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $12.14 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Debt - external: | $6.391 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $6.766 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - at home: | $20.67 billion (31 December 2010 est.) $18.89 billion (31 December 2009 est.) |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad: | $NA |
| Market value of publicly traded shares: | $30.86 billion (31 December 2010) $31.86 billion (31 December 2009) $35.85 billion (31 December 2008) |
| Exchange rates: | Jordanian dinars (JOD) per US dollar - 0.709 (2010) 0.709 (2009) 0.709 (2008) 0.709 (2007) 0.709 (2006) |
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| Communications |
| Telephones in use: | 501,200 (2009) country comparison to the world: 97 |
| Cellular Phones in use: | 6.014 million (2009) |
| Telephone system: | general assessment: service has improved recently with increased use of digital switching equipment; microwave radio relay transmission and coaxial and fiber-optic cable are employed on trunk lines; growing mobile-cellular usage in both urban and rural areas is reducing use of fixed-line services; Internet penetration remains modest and slow-growing domestic: 1995 telecommunications law opened all non-fixed-line services to private competition; in 2005, monopoly over fixed-line services terminated and the entire telecommunications sector was opened to competition; currently multiple mobile-cellular providers with subscribership rapidly approaching 100 per 100 persons international: country code - 962; landing point for the Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG) FEA and FLAG Falcon submarine cable networks; satellite earth stations - 33 (3 Intelsat, 1 Arabsat, and 29 land and maritime Inmarsat terminals); fiber-optic cable to Saudi Arabia and microwave radio relay link with Egypt and Syria; participant in Medarabtel (2010) |
| Radio broadcast stations: | |
| Television broadcast stations: | |
| Internet country code: | .jo |
| Internet hosts: | 42,412 (2010) |
| Internet users: | 1.642 million (2009) |
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| Transportation |
| Airports: | 18 (2010) country comparison to the world: 139 |
| Airports (paved runways): | total: 16 over 3,047 m: 8 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2010) |
| Airports (unpaved runways): | total: 2 under 914 m: 2 (2010) |
| Heliports: | 1 (2010) |
| Pipelines: | gas 439 km; oil 49 km (2010) |
| Railways: | total: 507 km narrow gauge: 507 km 1.050-m gauge (2010) |
| Roadways: | total: 7,891 km paved: 7,891 km (2009) |
| Merchant marine: | total: 13 by type: cargo 5, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 7 (UAE 7) registered in other countries: 20 (Bahamas 2, Egypt 2, Panama 13, Syria 2, unknown 1) (2010) |
| Ports and terminals: | Al 'Aqabah |
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| Military |
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| Military branches: | Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF): Royal Jordanian Land Force (RJLF), Royal Jordanian Navy, Royal Jordanian Air Force (Al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Malakiya al-Urduniya, RJAF), Special Operations Command (Socom); Public Security Directorate (normally falls under Ministry of Interior, but comes under JAF in wartime or crisis) (2011) |
| Military service age and obligation: | 17 years of age for voluntary military service; conscription for males at age 18 was suspended in 1999, but reinstated in July 2007 in order to provide youth training necessary for job market needs; all males under age 37 are required to register; women not subject to conscription, but can volunteer to serve in non-combat military positions in the Royal Jordanian Arab Army Women's Corps (2010) |
| Manpower available for military service: | males age 16-49: 1,674,260 females age 16-49: 1,611,315 (2010 est.) |
| Manpower fit for military service: | males age 16-49: 1,439,192 females age 16-49: 1,384,500 (2010 est.) |
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