Axion 3D Atlas/ATLAS.iso/stats/123.txt

Text File | 1998-01-23 | 13KB | 334 lines

{bitmap= 26,50,"flags\jordan.bmp"}
{bigtext=150,120,"Jordan"}



{1}Geography{4}
{4}To see a map of Jordan, click {z,"31.460815,29.024003,40.332829,35.755125",here}{4}!

{2}Location:{4} Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia

{2}Area:{4}
{3}total area:{4} 89,213 sq km
{3}land area:{4} 88,884 sq km
{3}comparative area:{4} slightly smaller than Indiana

{2}Land boundaries:{4}
{3}total:{4} 1,619 km
{3}border countries:{4} Iraq 181 km, Israel 238 km, Saudi Arabia 728 km, Syria 375 km, West Bank 97
km

{2}Coastline:{4} 26 km

{2}Maritime claims:{4}
{3}territorial sea:{4} 3 nm

{2}International disputes:{4} none

{2}Climate:{4} mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April)

{2}Terrain:{4} mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates East and
West Banks of the Jordan River
{3}lowest point:{4} Dead Sea -408 m
{3}highest point:{4} Jabal Ram 1,754 m

{2}Natural resources:{4} phosphates, potash, shale oil

{2}Land use:{4}
{3}arable land:{4} 4%
{3}permanent crops:{4} 0.5%
{3}meadows and pastures:{4} 1%
{3}forest and woodland:{4} 0.5%
{3}other:{4} 94%

{2}Irrigated land:{4} 570 sq km (1989 est.)

{2}Environment:{4}
{3}current issues:{4} limited natural fresh water resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion;
desertification

{2}natural hazards:{4} NA

{2}international agreements:{4} 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


{1}People{4}

{2}Population:{4} 4,212,152 (July 1996 est.)

{2}Age structure:{4}
{3}0-14 years:{4} 44% (male 949,822; female 903,043)
{3}15-64 years:{4} 53% (male 1,153,360; female 1,091,416)
{3}65 years and over:{4} 3% (male 57,783; female 56,728) (July 1996 est.)

{2}Population growth rate:{4} 2.65% (1996 est.)

{2}Birth rate:{4} 36.67 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)

{2}Death rate:{4} 3.95 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)

{2}Net migration rate:{4} -6.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)

{2}Sex ratio:{4}
{3}at birth:{4} 1.06 male(s)/female
{3}under 15 years:{4} 1.05 male(s)/female
{3}15-64 years:{4} 1.06 male(s)/female
{3}65 years and over:{4} 1.02 male(s)/female
{3}all ages:{4} 1.05 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

{2}Infant mortality rate:{4} 31.5 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)

{2}Life expectancy at birth:{4}
{3}total population:{4} 72.48 years
{3}male:{4} 70.62 years
{3}female:{4} 74.45 years (1996 est.)

{2}Total fertility rate:{4} 5.1 children born/woman (1996 est.)

{2}Nationality:{4}
{3}noun:{4} Jordanian(s)
{3}adjective:{4} Jordanian

{2}Ethnic divisions:{4} Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1%

{2}Religions:{4} Sunni Muslim 92%, Christian 8%

{2}Languages:{4} Arabic (official), English widely understood among upper and middle classes

{2}Literacy:{4} age 15 and over can read and write (1995 est.)
{3}total population:{4} 86.6%
{3}male:{4} 93.4%
{3}female:{4} 79.4%


{1}Government{4}

{2}Name of country:{4}
{3}conventional long form:{4} Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
{3}conventional short form:{4} Jordan
{3}local long form:{4} Al Mamlakah al Urduniyah al Hashimiyah
{3}local short form:{4} Al Urdun
{3}former:{4} Transjordan

{2}Type of government:{4} constitutional monarchy

{2}Capital:{4} Amman

{2}Administrative divisions:{4} 8 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Balqa', Al Karak, Al
Mafraq, 'Amman, At Tafilah, Az Zarqa', Irbid, Ma'an

{2}Independence:{4} 25 May 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration)

{2}National holiday:{4} Independence Day, 25 May (1946)

{2}Constitution:{4} 8 January 1952

{2}Legal system:{4} based on Islamic law and French codes; judicial review of legislative acts in a
specially provided High Tribunal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

{2}Suffrage:{4} 20 years of age; universal

{2}Executive branch:{4}
{3}chief of state:{4} King HUSSEIN Bin Talal Al Hashimi (since 2 May 1953) is a constitutional monarch
{3}head of government:{4} Prime Minister Abd al-Karim al-KABARITI (since 4 February 1996) was
appointed by the king
{3}cabinet:{4} Cabinet was appointed by the king

{2}Legislative branch:{4} bicameral National Assembly (Majlis al-'Umma)
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
{3}note:{4} 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

{2}Judicial branch:{4} Court of Cassation

{2}Political parties and leaders:{4} 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
{3}note:{4} 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

{2}International organization participation:{4} 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)

{2}Diplomatic representation in US:{4}
{3}chief of mission:{4} Ambassador Fayiz A. TARAWNEH
{3}chancery:{4} 3504 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008
{3}telephone:{4} [1] [phone]
{3}FAX:{4} [1] [phone]

{2}US diplomatic representation:{4}
{3}chief of mission:{4} Ambassador Wesley W. EGAN, Jr.
{3}embassy:{4} Jabel Amman, Amman
{3}mailing address:{4} P. O. Box 354, Amman 11118 Jordan; APO AE 09892-0200
{3}telephone:{4} [962] (6) 820101
{3}FAX:{4} [962] (6) 820159

{2}Flag:{4} 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


{1}Economy{4}

{2}Economic overview:{4} 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.

{2}GDP:{4} purchasing power parity - $19.3 billion (1995 est.)

{2}GDP real growth rate:{4} 6.5% (1995 est.)

{2}GDP per capita:{4} $4,700 (1995 est.)

{2}GDP composition by sector:{4}
{3}agriculture:{4} 11%
{3}industry:{4} 25%
{3}services:{4} 64% (1994)

{2}Inflation rate (consumer prices):{4} 3% (1995 est.)

{2}Labor force:{4} 600,000 (1992)
{3}by occupation:{4} 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)

{2}Unemployment rate:{4} 16% (1994 est.)

{2}Budget:{4}
{3}revenues:{4} $2.5 billion
{3}expenditures:{4} $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $640 million (1996 est.)

{2}Industries:{4} phosphate mining, petroleum refining, cement, potash, light manufacturing

{2}Industrial production growth rate:{4} 5.6% (1994 est.)

{2}Electricity:{4}
{3}capacity:{4} 1,050,000 kW
{3}production:{4} 4.2 billion kWh
{3}consumption per capita:{4} 1,072 kWh (1993)

{2}Agriculture:{4} wheat, barley, citrus, tomatoes, melons, olives; sheep, goats, poultry

{2}Exports:{4} $1.7 billion (f.o.b., 1994)
{3}commodities:{4} phosphates, fertilizers, potash, agricultural products, manufactures
{3}partners:{4} India, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, EU, Indonesia, UAE

{2}Imports:{4} $3.8 billion (c.i.f., 1994)
{3}commodities:{4} crude oil, machinery, transport equipment, food, live animals, manufactured goods
{3}partners:{4} EU, US, Iraq, Japan, Turkey

{2}External debt:{4} $6.9 billion (1995 est.)

{2}Economic aid:{4}
{3}recipient:{4} ODA, $238 million (1993)

{2}Currency:{4} 1 Jordanian dinar (JD) = 1,000 fils

{2}Exchange rates:{4} 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)

{2}Fiscal year:{4} calendar year


{1}Transportation{4}

{2}Railways:{4}
{3}total:{4} 676 km
narrow gauge: 676 km 1.050-m gauge; note - an additional 110 km stretch of the old Hedjaz
railroad is out of use

{2}Highways:{4}
{3}total:{4} 5,680 km
{3}paved:{4} 5,680 km (including 1,712 km of expressways)
{3}unpaved:{4} 0 km (1991 est.)

{2}Pipelines:{4} crude oil 209 km

{2}Ports:{4} Al'Aqabah

{2}Merchant marine:{4}
{3}total:{4} 3 bulk ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 41,960 GRT/67,515 DWT (1995 est.)

{2}Airports:{4}
{3}total:{4} 14
{3}with paved runways over 3,047 m:{4} 10
{3}with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m:{4} 3
{3}with paved runways under 914 m:{4} 1 (1995 est.)


{1}Communications{4}

{2}Telephones:{4} 81,500 (1987 est.)

{2}Telephone system:{4} adequate telephone system
{3}domestic:{4} microwave radio relay, cable, and radiotelephone links
{3}international:{4} 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

{2}Radio broadcast stations:{4} AM 5, FM 7, shortwave 0

{2}Radios:{4} 1.1 million (1992 est.)

{2}Television broadcast stations:{4} 8 and 1 TV receive-only satellite link

{2}Televisions:{4} 350,000 (1992 est.)


{1}Defense{4}

{2}Branches:{4} 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)

{2}Manpower availability:{4}
{3}males age 15-49:{4} 1,011,588
{3}males fit for military service:{4} 721,460
{3}males reach military age (18) annually:{4} 45,406 (1996 est.)

{2}Defense expenditures:{4} exchange rate conversion - $589 million, 8.2% of GDP (1996)