Jordan
|
Name: The Hashemite kingdom of Jordan Location: North West of the Arabian Peninsula in Middle East. History: Before First World War Jordan was under Greek, Roman, Turkish and Arab rule till UK received the mandate to rule the Middle East. The emirate of TransJordan east of river Jordan and the western area of the river known as Palestine was established under British mandate. This mandate ended after the Second World War, with the breakup of Ottoman Empire the League of the Nations crated the new mandate and the emirate under Abdullah became the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in 1946. Abdullah was assassinated in 1951 and his sons succeeded the throne. Talal his elder son ruled for a brief period and then Hussein ruled from 1952 to 1999. Abdullah II, son of Hussein succeeded the throne in 1999 since then he had consolidated his position. Borders: Bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the north east, Saudi Arabia to east and south and Israel to the west. Coastline: It shares its coast with Israel, the coastline of the Dead Sea and the Gulf of Aquaba with Israel, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. Area: 92,300 sq km Capital: Amman Currency: Jordan Dinnar (JOD) Terrain: To the east lies TransJordan plateau covered with forest or bushes and east of that is a wide desert and Great Rift Valley separates east and west banks of the river Jordan. Rainfall in the western part is up to 30 inches but the eastern part has less than 4 inches. Climate: It is hot and mostly arid desert, rainy season in the west from November to April. Nationality: Jordanian Ethnic Groups: Arab 98%, Circassian 1% and Armenian 1 % Religion: About 90% of the population is Muslim Arabs. Sunni Muslims 92%, Christians 6% and others include Shia Muslims 2% according to 2000 est. Language: Arabic but English is also used by upper and middle class. Population: 5,906,760 (July 2006 est.) Population Growth Rate: 2.49% (2006 est) Literacy: total population 91.3%, male 95.9% and Female 86.3 %. Internet Country Code: .jo Calling Code: +962 Government: Constitutional Monarchy Independence: 25 May 1946 from UK administration National Holiday: Independence Day 25 May Constitution: 1 January 1952 amended in 1954, 1960, 1965, 1973, 1974, 1976 and in 1984. Legal System: It is based on Islamic Law and French Codes. Executive Branch: King is the chief of the state; he signs and executes all laws. Prime Minister is the head of the government. Monarchy is hereditary and he prime minister is appointed by the king. The Cabinet is appointed by prime minister in consultation with the monarch. Legislative Branch: Bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al Umma consisting of Senate and Chamber of Deputies. Senate is called House of Notables (Majlis al Ayan) and is appointed by he king for 4 year term. Chamber of Deputies is called House of Representatives (Majlis al Nuwaab) with 110 members elected by universal suffrage (18 years) for 4 year term 9 seats are reserved for Christians, 6 for women and 3 for Circassians and Chechens, this house can be dismissed by the king. Judiciary Branch: Court of Cassation, the Supreme Court is court of final appeal. Flag: The design of this flag is based on the Arab revolt of World War I and has 3 equal bands of black on top, then white and green on the bottom. Black represents Abbasid Caliphate, white represents Umayyid Caliphate and green represents Fatimid Caliphate. There is a red triangle on the hoist side which represents Great Arab Revolt of 1916. the triangle has a small white seven pointed star symbolizing seven verses of the opening Sura (Al Fatiha) of the Holy Kuran and seven points represent faith in God, Humanity, National Spirit, Humility, Social justice, virtue and aspiration. National Anthem: As Salam al malaki al urdoni (long live the king). Coat of Arm: It has golden coloured Royal Hashemite Crown, which represents the Monarchy and interests on the sash representing the Royal Hashemite throne and 2 flags represents Great Arab Revolt. It has an eagle standing on the globe, its wings touches the flags on both ends and is symbol of power, fortified and elevation. Blue colour of the globe signifies the world wide spread of Islam. A bronze shield is placed in front of the globe representing defense of rightness. From either side of the shield and globe swords, spears, bows and arrow of the gold colour protrude. Three ears of wheat encircle the shield from its base in the right and palm frond to the left attached to the ribbon of Al Nahda first under medal with the inscribed phrases on the right: Abdullah II bin Al Hussein bin Aoun (Aoun, the great grandfather of Al Sharif Al Hussein bin Ali) in the middle King of Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and on the left who seeks support and guidance from God. Economy: Mining and processing potash is the most important industry, agriculture is not so good due to insufficient water supply but now government is trying to improve its economy by liberalizing the trade regime. It has joined WTO in (2000) and signed a free trade accord with US 2001. Industries: Textiles, phosphate mining, fertilizers, petroleum refining, pharmaceuticals, cement, potash, inorganic chemicals and light manufacturing tourism. Export Commodities: Clothing, pharmaceuticals, potash, phosphate, fertilizers, manufacturers and manufacturers. Import Commodities: Crude oil, textile fabric, machinery manufactured goods and transport equipment. |