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Jordan

The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan is situated in the Southwest Asia, sharing the borders of Syria to the north, Iraq to the north-east, Israel and the West Bank to the west, and Saudi Arabia to the east and south. Dead Sea and Gulf of Aqaba bounds the nation to the west and south respectively. Major portion of the nation comprises desert. Amman is the capital of Jordan.

HISTORY:- Jordan passed to the Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Persians, and the Seleucids around 330 BC. In 106, Jordan was incorporated into the Roman provinces of Arabia. In the 16th century, Ottoman Turkish rule started in the region. After the fall of Ottoman Empire following the World War I, Jordan was ceded to British power. In 1920, the League of Nations imposed British Mandate over Palestine, 90% of which was east to the Jordan River. In 1921, Transjordan came under the rule of Hashemite king Abdullah I of Jordan. Continuing the mandate, British granted independence to Jordan in 1923. In 1946, the mandate was abolished. In 1951, King Abdullah was assassinated. Hussein became the king in 1952. Jordan joined Central Treaty Organization in 1955. In 1956 when Britain, France, and Israel attacked the Suez Canal, Jordan was forced to incorporate with the United Arab Republic of Egypt and Syria. In 1961, Jordan broke off all relations with the United Arab Republic. In Arab-Israeli War in 1967, Jordan lost all its West Bank territories and Jerusalem to Israel. Open war between Palestinian guerrilla forces and King Hussein's government broke out in 1970. In spite of the assistance of The Syrian army, the Palestinians were defeated. Hussein broke up ties with Cairo.

GEOGRAPHY:- Jordan is located at 31 00 N, 36 00 E in Southwest Asia in the Middle East, possessing total 92,300 sq km area (land: 91,971 sq km; water: 329 sq km) on the surface of the world. The coastline is 26 km long bordering the Gulf of Aqaba and the Dead Sea. The lowest point is Dead Sea (-408 m) and the highest point is Jabal Ram (1,734 m). Jordan is composed of desert plateau in the east, highland area in the west. The Great Rift Valley separates the East and West Banks of the Jordan River.

CLIMATE:- The climate of Jordan is mostly arid, dry, desert. The wet rainy season persists from November to April in the western part of the nation.

GOVERNMENT:- Jordan has a constitutional monarchy. The constitution was adopted on 1st January 1952 and was amended many times later. The legal system is based on the Islamic law and French codes. The three major branches of the government are:

Executive branch comprises the King (chief of state), the Prime Minister (head of government), and the cabinet. The Prime minister is appointed by the Monarch. The cabinet is appointed by the Prime minister after consultation with the Monarch.

Legislative branch comprises the bicameral National Assembly which consists of the Senate or the House of Notables (55 seats) and the Chamber of Deputies or the House of Representatives (110 seats).

Judicial branch comprises the Court of Cassation and the Supreme Court.

Among the major political parties of Jordan, al-Ahd Party, Arab Islamic Democratic Movement, Arab Land Party, Arab Socialist Ba'th Party, Freedom Party; Future Party; Islamic Action Front are important. Suffrage is universal at the age of 18.

King Abdullah

Prime Minister Nader al-Dahabi

ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISIONS:- Jordan is divided into 12 governorates, which are further sun-divided into 52 nahias.

CULTURE:- The music of Jordan is highly influenced by the Bedouin music. Football and basketball are most widely practiced in Jordan.

ECONOMY:- Jordan has insufficient natural resources with a huge water scarcity. Poverty, unemployment, and inflation are the major issues against the economic growth of the country.

GDP/PPP (2007 est.): $28.18 billion; per capita $4,700.

Real growth rate: 5.7%.

Inflation: 5.4%.

Unemployment: 13.5% official rate; unofficial rate is approximately 30% (2007 est.).

Arable land: 3%.

Agriculture: Wheat, barley, citrus, tomatoes, melons, olives; sheep, goats, poultry.

Labor force: 1.563 million; services 85.8%, industry 10.5%, agriculture 3.7% (2007 est.).

Industries: Textiles, phosphate mining, fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, petroleum refining, cement, potash, inorganic chemicals, light manufacturing, tourism.

Budget:

Revenues: $5.117 billion

Expenditures: $6.468 billion (2007 est.)

Public debt: 72.7% of GDP (2007 est.)

Debt - external: $8.206 billion (31 December 2007 est.)

Natural resources: Phosphates, potash, shale oil.

Exports: $6.037 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): clothing, phosphates, fertilizers, potash, vegetables, manufactures, pharmaceuticals.

Imports: $11.08 billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): crude oil, textile fabrics, machinery, transport equipment, manufactured goods.

Major trading partners: U.S., Iraq, India, Saudi Arabia, China, Germany (2004).

Monetary unit: Jordanian dinar

LANGUAGE:- Arabic is the official language of Jordan. English is widely spoken by the upper and middle classes.

CITIES:- The capital Amman is the largest city of Jordan. Other major cities are Zarka, Irbid, As-Salt.

POPULATION:- The estimated population of Jordan is 6,053,193 with a growth rate of 2.4%.

Density per sq mi: 171

Literacy rate: 90% (2003 est.)

RACE:-

Arab 98%

Circassian 1%

Armenian 1%

RELIGION:-

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)

HEALTH:-

Birth rate: 20.13 births/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Death rate: 2.72 deaths/1,000 population (2008 est.)

Infant mortality rate: total: 15.57 deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth: total population: 78.71 years

Total fertility rate: 2.47 children born/woman (2008 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 500 (2003 est.)

Total expenditure on health per capita (Intl $, 2005): 649

UNICEF:- The several early child care and development programmes work for the protection of children and adolescent rights in Jordan. UNICEF ties up with the government of Jordan and other non-governmental organizations like the British Council, National Centre for Hunman Rights, law enforcement officials, Family Protection Development, the International Labour Organization, the National Council for Family Affairs and WHO to carry out its services to protect rights of children in the nation. UNICEF also works with collaboration of UN Development Programme (UNDP), UNFPA, WHO, the World Food Programme and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

TRANSPORTATION:-

Railways: total: 505 km (2006).

Highways: total: 7,500 km; paved: 7,500 km; unpaved: 0 km (2004).

Ports and harbors: Al 'Aqabah.

Airports: 17 (2007)

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