Facts and Figures 1. Environment Current Issues: Limited natural freshwater resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification

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1 Area: Total: 89,342 sq km (34,495 sq mi) Facts and Figures 1 Area Comparative: Slightly smaller than Indiana Land Boundaries: Total: 1,635 km (1,016 mi) Border countries: Iraq 181 km (113 mi), Israel 238 km (148 mi), Saudi Arabia 744 km (462 mi), Syria 375 km (233 mi), West Bank 97 km (60 mi) Coastline: 26 km (16 mi) 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 (-1,339 ft) Highest point: Jabal Umm ad Dami 1,854 m (6,083 ft) 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 (317 sq mi) (2008) Natural Hazards: Droughts; periodic earthquakes Environment Current Issues: Limited natural freshwater resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification 1 Information in this section comes from the following source: Central Intelligence Agency, Jordan, in The World Factbook, 14 June 2011,

2 Geography Note: 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 Population: 6,508,271 (July 2011 est.) Age Structure: 0 14 years: 35.3% (male 1,180,595/female 1,114,533) 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: births/1,000 population (2011 est.) Death Rate: 2.69 deaths/1,000 population (July 2011 est.) Urbanization: Urban population: 79% of total population (2010) Rate of urbanization: 1.6% annual rate of change ( est.) Infant Mortality Rate: Total: deaths/1,000 live births Life Expectancy at Birth: Total population: years Male: years Female: years (2011 est.) Total Fertility Rate: 3.39 children born/woman (2011 est.) Drinking Water Source: Improved: Urban: 98% of population Rural: 91% of population

3 Total: 96% of population Unimproved: Urban: 2% of population Rural: 9% of population Total: 4% of population (2008) Sanitation Facility Access: Improved: Urban: 98% of population Rural: 97% of population Total: 98% of population Unimproved: Urban: 2% of population Rural: 3% of population Total: 2% of population (2008) Nationality: Noun: Jordanian(s) Adjective: Jordanian Ethnic Groups: Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1% Religions: 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 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.) 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

4 Capital: Name: Amman 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 Marouf al-bakhit (since 1 February 2011); Deputy Prime Minister Saad Hayel Srour 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 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 multimember 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

5 Elections: Chamber of Deputies last held on 9 November 2010 (next scheduled in 2014); 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] International Organization Participation: Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (ABEDA), Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development (AFESD), Arab Monetary Fund (AMF), Council of Arab Economic Unity (CAEU), Conference of Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia (CICA), Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Group of 11 (G-11), Group of 77 (G-77), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), International Bank for Reconstruction and Development [World Bank] (IBRD), International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRM), International Development Association (IDA), Islamic Development Bank (IDB), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), International Finance Corporation (IFC), International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRCS), International Labor Organization (ILO), International Monetary Fund (IMF), International Maritime Organization (IMO), International Criminal Police Organization (Interpol), International Olympic Committee (IOC), International Organization for Migration (IOM), Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), International Organization for Standardization (ISO), International Telecommunications Satellites Organization (ITSO), International Telecommunication Union (ITU), International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), League of Arab States (LAS), Multilateral Investment Geographic Agency (MIGA), United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO), United Nations Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), Nonaligned Movement (NAM), Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) [partner], Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA), United Nations (UN), African Union/United Nations Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID), United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), United Nations Industrial

6 Development Organization (UNIDO), United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), United Nations Mission in the Sudan (UNMIS), United Nations Operation in Cote d Ivoire (UNOCI), United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Universal Postal Union (UPU), World Customs Organization (WCO), World Federation of Trade Unions (WFTU), World Health Organization (WHO), World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), World Meteorological Organization (WMO), World Trade Organization (WTO) GDP (purchasing power parity): USD billion (2010 est.) GDP Per Capita (PPP): USD 5,400 (2010 est.) GDP Composition by Sector: Agriculture: 3.4% Industry: 30.3% Services: 66.2% (2010 est.) Labor Force: million (2010 est.) Labor Force By Occupation: Agriculture: 2.7% Industry: 20% Services: 77.4% (2007 est.) Unemployment Rate: 13.4% (2010 est.) Note: official rate; unofficial rate is approximately 30% Population Below Poverty Line: 14.2% (2002) Budget: Revenues: USD billion Expenditures: USD billion (2010 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 Oil Production:

7 0 bbl/day (2008 est.) Oil Consumption: 108,000 bbl/day (2009 est.) Exports: USD billion (2010 est.) USD billion (2009 est.) Exports Commodities: Clothing, fertilizers, potash, phosphates, vegetables, pharmaceuticals Exports Partners: US 17.13%, Iraq 17%, India 13.59%, Saudi Arabia 10.56%, Syria 4.18%, UAE 4.09% (2009) Imports: USD billion (2010 est.) Imports Commodities: Crude oil, machinery, transport equipment, iron, cereals Imports Partners: Saudi Arabia 17.3%, China 10.95%, US 6.94%, Germany 6.29%, Egypt 6.1% (2009) Internet Users: million (2009) Airports: 18 (2010) Airports with Paved Runways: Total: 16 Railways: Total: 507 km (315 mi) Roadways: Total: 7,891 km (4,903 mi) Ports and Terminals: Al 'Aqabah 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

8 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.) Military Expenditures: 8.6% of GDP (2006) Disputes International: Approximately two million Iraqis have fled the conflict in Iraq, with the majority taking refuge in Syria and Jordan; 2004 Agreement settles border dispute with Syria pending demarcation Refugees and Internally Displaced Persons: Refugees (country of origin): 1,835,704 (Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA)); 500,000 (Iraq) IDPs: 160,000 (1967 Arab-Israeli War) (2007)