Jordan

agricultural land:

11.4%;

• arable land 2%;
• permanent crops 1%;
• permanent pasture 8.4%

forest:

1.1%

other:

87.5% (2011 est.)

total:

0.94 cu km/yr (31%/4%/65%)

per capita:

166 cu m/yr (2005)

• limited natural freshwater resources;
• deforestation;
• overgrazing;
• soil erosion;
• desertification

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

noun:

Jordanian(s)

adjective:

Jordanian

at birth:

1.06 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

1 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.95 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.89 male(s)/female

total population:

1.02 male(s)/female (2015 est.)

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

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 last Friday in March; ends last Friday in October

• 12 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah);
• 'Ajlun, Al 'Aqabah, Al Balqa', Al Karak, Al Mafraq, Al'Asimah, At Tafilah, Az Zarqa', Irbid, Jarash, Ma'an, Madaba

• previous 1928 (preindependence);
• latest initially adopted 28 November 1947, revised and ratified 1 January 1952;
• amended several times, last in 2014 (2014)

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 Abdullah NSOUR (since 11 October 2012)

cabinet:

Cabinet appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the monarch

elections/appointments:

the monarchy is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch

description:

• bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-'Umma consists of the Senate, or the House of Notables or Majlis al-Ayan (60 seats; members appointed by the monarch to serve 4-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies or House of Representatives or Majlis al-Nuwaab (150 seats; 108 members directly elected in single- and multi-seat constituencies by simple majority vote, 27 directly elected in a single national constituency by proportional representation vote, and 15 seats reserved for women; members serve 4-year terms);
• note - the electoral law enacted in July 2012 allocated an additional 10 seats - 6 for women, 2 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 23 January 2013 (next election 2017);
• note - the King dissolved the previous Chamber of Deputies in November 2012, midway through the parliamentary term

election results:

• Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - NA;
• seats by party - 27 elected on closed national list to include: Islamic Centrist Party 3, Nation 2, National Union 2, Stronger Jordan 2, Ahl al-Himma 1, Al-Bayyan 1, Citizenship 1, Construction 1, Cooperation 1, Dawn 1, Dignity 1, Free Voice 1, Labor and Trade 1, National Accord Youth Block 1, National Action 1, National Current 1 (member resigned in February 2013), National Unity 1, Nobel Jerusalem 1, Salvation 1, The People 1, Unified Front 1, Voice of Nation 1;
• other 123;
• note - the IAF boycotted the election

highest court(s):

Court of Cassation or Supreme Court (consists of 7 judges including the chief justice; 7-judge panels for important cases and 5 judge panels for most appeals cases)

judge selection and term of office:

• chief justice appointed by the king;
• other judges nominated by the Higher Judicial Council and approved by the king;
• judge tenure NA

subordinate courts:

• courts of appeal;
• magistrate courts;
• courts of first instance;
• religious courts;
• State Security Court

• Ahl al-Himma
• Al-Bayyan
• Al-Hayah Jordanian Party [Zahier AMR]
• Arab Ba'ath Socialist Party [Akram al-HIMSI]
• Ba'ath Arab Progressive Party [Fuad DABBOUR]
• Citizenship
• Construction
• Cooperation
• Dawn
• Democratic People's Party [Ablah ABU ULBAH]
• Democratic Popular Unity Party [Sa'id DIAB]
• Dignity
• Du'a Party [Muhammed ABU BAKR]
• Free Voice
• Islamic Action Front or IAF [Hamzah MANSOUR]
• Islamic Centrist Party [Muhammad al-HAJ]
• Jordanian Communist Party [Munir HAMARNAH]
• Jordanian National Party [Muna ABU BAKR]
• Jordanian United Front [Amjad al-MAJALI]
• Labor and Trade
• Nation
• National Accord Youth Block
• National Action
• National Constitution Party [Ahmad al-SHUNAQ]
• National Current Party [Abd al-Hadi al-MAJALI]
• National Movement for Direct Democracy [Muhammad al-QAQ]
• National Union
• National Unity
• Nobel Jerusalem
• Risalah Party [Hazem QASHOU]
• Salvation
• Stronger Jordan
• The Direct Democratic Nationalists Movement Party [Nash'at KHALIFAH]
• The People
• Unified Front
• United Front
• Voice of the Nation

• 15 April Movement [Mohammad SUNEID, chairman]
• 24 March Movement [Mu'az al-KHAWALIDAH, Abdel Rahman HASANEIN, spokespersons]
• 1952 Constitution Movement
• Anti-Normalization Committee [Hamzah MANSOUR, chairman]
• Economic and Social Association of Retired Servicemen and Veterans or ESARSV [Abdulsalam al-HASSANAT, chairman]
• Group of 36
• Higher Coordination Committee of Opposition Parties [Said DIAB]
• Higher National Committee for Military Retirees or HNCMR [Ali al-HABASHNEH, chairman]
• Hirak
• Jordan Bar Association [Saleh al-ARMUTI, chairman]
• Jordanian Campaign for Change or Jayin
• Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood [Dr. Hamam SAID, controller general]
• Jordanian Press Association [Sayf al-SHARIF, president]
• National Front for Reform or NFR [Ahmad OBEIDAT, chairman]
• Popular Gathering for Reform
• Professional Associations Council [Abd al-Hadi al-FALAHAT, chairman]
• Sons of Jordan

chief of mission:

Ambassador Alia Hatough BOURAN (since 14 September 2010)

chancery:

3504 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 966-2664

FAX:

[1] (202) 966-3110

chief of mission:

Ambassador Alice G. WELLS (since 31 August 2014)

embassy:

Abdoun, Al-Umawyeen St., 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) 592-0163

• three equal horizontal bands of black (top), representing the Abbassid Caliphate, white, representing the Ummayyad Caliphate, and green, representing the Fatimid Caliphate;
• a red isosceles triangle on the hoist side, representing the Great Arab Revolt of 1916, and bearing a small white seven-pointed star symbolizing the seven verses of the opening Sura (Al-Fatiha) of the Holy Koran;
• the seven points on the star represent faith in One God, humanity, national spirit, humility, social justice, virtue, and aspirations;
• design is based on the Arab Revolt flag of World War I

name:

"As-salam al-malaki al-urdoni" (Long Live the King of Jordan)

lyrics/music:

Abdul-Mone'm al-RIFAI'/Abdul-Qader al-TANEER

note: adopted 1946; the shortened version of the anthem is used most commonly, while the full version is reserved for special occasions

agriculture:

2%

industry:

20%

services:

78% (2013 est.)

lowest 10%:

3.4%

highest 10%:

28.7% (2010 est.)

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

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 reaching 115 per 100 persons in 2011

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 (2011)

• radio and TV dominated by the government-owned Jordan Radio and Television Corporation (JRTV) that operates a main network, a sports network, a film network, and a satellite channel;
• first independent TV broadcaster aired in 2007;
• international satellite TV and Israeli and Syrian TV broadcasts are available;
• roughly 30 radio stations with JRTV operating the main government-owned station;
• transmissions of multiple international radio broadcasters are available (2007)

total:

507 km

narrow gauge:

507 km 1.050-m gauge (2008)

country comparison to the world: 112

total:

7,203 km

paved:

7,203 km (2011)

country comparison to the world: 144

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) (2013)

• 17 years of age for voluntary male military service;
• initial service term 2 years, with option to reenlist for 18 years;
• conscription at age 18 suspended in 1999;
• women not subject to conscription, but can volunteer to serve in noncombat military positions in the Royal Jordanian Arab Army Women's Corps and RJAF (2013)

males age 16-49:

1,674,260

females age 16-49:

1,611,315 (2010 est.)

males age 16-49:

1,439,192

females age 16-49:

1,384,500 (2010 est.)

male:

73,574

female:

69,420 (2010 est.)

refugees (country of origin):

• 2,097,338 (Palestinian refugees (UNRWA)) (2014);
• 628,887 (Syria);
• 50,638 (Iraq) (2015)