Jordan

Country Summary

Introduction

Background

Following World War I and the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, the League of Nations awarded Britain the mandate to govern much of the Middle East. Britain demarcated a semi-autonomous region of Transjordan from Palestine in the early 1920s. The area gained its independence in 1946 and thereafter became The Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan.

Geography

Area

total: 89,342 sq km
land: 88,802 sq km
water: 540 sq km

Climate

mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April)

Natural resources

phosphates, potash, shale oil

People and Society

Population

11,086,716 (2023 est.)

Ethnic groups

Jordanian 69.3%, Syrian 13.3%, Palestinian 6.7%, Egyptian 6.7%, Iraqi 1.4%, other 2.6% (2015 est.)

Languages

Arabic (official), English (widely understood among upper and middle classes)

Religions

Muslim 97.1% (official; predominantly Sunni), Christian 2.1% (majority Greek Orthodox, but some Greek and Roman Catholics, Syrian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, and Protestant denominations), Buddhist 0.4%, Hindu 0.1%, Jewish <0.1%, folk <0.1%, other <0.1%, unaffiliated <0.1% (2020 est.)

Population growth rate

0.79% (2023 est.)

Government

Government type

parliamentary constitutional monarchy

Capital

name: Amman

Executive branch

chief of state: King ABDALLAH II (since 7 February 1999); Heir Apparent Crown Prince HUSSEIN (eldest son of the monarch, born 28 June 1994); the monarchy is hereditary
head of government: Prime Minister Bisher AL-KHASAWNEH (since 7 October 2020)

Legislative branch

description: bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-'Umma consists of:
Senate or the House of Notables or Majlis al-Ayan (65 seats; members appointed by the monarch to serve 4-year terms)
Chamber of Deputies or House of Representatives or Majlis al-Nuwaab (130 seats; 115 members directly elected in 23 multi-seat constituencies by open-list proportional representation vote and 15 seats for women; 12 of the 115 seats reserved for Christian, Chechen, and Circassian candidates; members serve 4-year terms)

Economy

Economic overview

low growth, upper middle-income Middle Eastern economy; high debt and unemployment, especially for youth and women; key US foreign assistance recipient; natural resource-poor and import-reliant

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)

$102.822 billion (2021 est.)
$100.581 billion (2020 est.)
$102.185 billion (2019 est.)

Real GDP per capita

$9,200 (2021 est.)
$9,200 (2020 est.)
$9,600 (2019 est.)

Agricultural products

tomatoes, poultry, olives, milk, potatoes, cucumbers, vegetables, watermelons, green chillies/peppers, peaches/nectarines

Industries

tourism, information technology, clothing, fertilizer, potash, phosphate mining, pharmaceuticals, petroleum refining, cement, inorganic chemicals, light manufacturing

Remittances

11.29% of GDP (2021 est.)
11.05% of GDP (2020 est.)
10.34% of GDP (2019 est.)

Exports

$13.864 billion (2021 est.)
$10.444 billion (2020 est.)
$16.17 billion (2019 est.)

Exports - partners

United States 26%, India 13%, Saudi Arabia 11%, Iraq 5%, China 4% (2021)

Exports - commodities

fertilizers, clothing and apparel, calcium phosphates, phosphoric acid, packaged medicines (2021)

Imports

$23.392 billion (2021 est.)
$18.424 billion (2020 est.)
$21.964 billion (2019 est.)

Imports - partners

China 17%, Saudi Arabia 14%, United Arab Emirates 11%, United States 5%, Turkey 3% (2021)

Imports - commodities

cars, refined petroleum, gold, crude petroleum, clothing and apparel, broadcasting equipment, packaged medicines (2021)

Exchange rates

Jordanian dinars (JOD) per US dollar -
Exchange rates:
0.71 (2021 est.)
0.71 (2020 est.)
0.71 (2019 est.)
0.71 (2018 est.)
0.71 (2017 est.)


Page last updated: Tuesday, December 19, 2023