Legislative branch:
bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-'Umma consists of the
Senate, also called the House of Notables (Majlis al-Ayan) (40
seats; members appointed by the monarch from designated categories
of public figures; members serve four-year terms) and the House of
Representatives, also called the House of Deputies (Majlis
al-Nuwaab) (110 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis
of proportional representation to serve four-year terms; note - six
seats are reserved for women and are allocated by a special
electoral panel if no women are elected)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 17 June 2003, next
to be held NA 2007
note: the House of Representatives has been convened and dissolved
by the monarch several times since 1974; in November 1989, the first
parliamentary elections in 22 years were held; political parties
were not legalized until 1992; King Abdallah delayed the 2001
elections until 2003
election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by
party - independents and others 89.6%, Islamic Action Front 10.4%;
seats by party - independents and others 92, Islamic Action Front 18
(note - one of the six quota seats was given to a female IAF
candidate)
Judicial branch:
Court of Cassation; Supreme Court (court of final appeal)
Political parties and leaders:
Al-Umma (Nation) Party [Ahmad al-HANANDEH, secretary general]; Arab
Land Party [Dr. Muhammad al-'ORAN, secretary general]; Communist
Party [Munir HAMARINAH, secretary general]; Constitutional Front
[Mahdi al-TALL, secretary general]; Jordanian Democratic Popular
Unity Party [Sa'id DHIYAB, secretary general]; Jordanian Progressive
Party [Fawwaz al-ZUBI, secretary general]; Jordanian People's
Democratic (Hashd) Party [Salim al-NAHHAS, secretary general];
Islamic Action Front [Hazma MANSOUR, secretary general]; National
Action (Haqq) Party [Muhammad al-ZUBI, secretary general]; National
Constitutional Party [Abdul Hadi MAJALI, secretary general]; (Arab)
Socialist Ba'th Party [Taysif al-HIMSI, secretary general]; Pan-Arab
(Democratic) Movement [Mahmud al-NUWAYHI, secretary general]
Political pressure groups and leaders:
Anti-Normalization Committee [Ali Abu SUKKAR, president vice
chairman]; Jordanian Bar Association [Saleh ARMOUTI, president];
Jordanian Press Association [Sayf al-SHARIF, president]; Muslim
Brotherhood [Abd-al-Majid DHUNAYBAT, secretary general]
International organization participation:
ABEDA, ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF,
IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE
(partner), PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH,
UNMIK, UNMISET, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO,
WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Karim Tawfiq KAWAR chancery: 3504 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 FAX: [1] (202) 966-3110 telephone: [1] (202) 966-2664
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Edward William GNEHM, Jr. embassy: Abdoun, Amman mailing address: P. O. Box 354, Amman 11118 Jordan; Unit 70200, Box 5, APO AE 09892-0200 telephone: [962] (6) 5920101 FAX: [962] (6) 5920121
Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of black (top, the Abbassid Caliphate
of Islam), white (the Ummayyad Caliphate of Islam), and green (the
Fatimid Caliphate of Islam) with a red isosceles triangle
(representing the Great Arab Revolt of 1916) based on the hoist side
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
Economy Jordan
Economy - overview:
Jordan is a small Arab country with inadequate supplies of water
and other natural resources such as oil. Debt, poverty, and
unemployment are fundamental problems, but King ABDALLAH since
assuming the throne in 1999 has undertaken some broad economic
reforms in a long-term effort to improve living standards. Amman in
the past three years has worked closely with the IMF, practiced
careful monetary policy, and made significant headway with
privatization. The government also has liberalized the trade regime
sufficiently to secure Jordan's membership in the WTrO (2000), a
free trade accord with US (2000), and an association agreement with
the EU (2001). These measures have helped improve productivity and
have put Jordan on the foreign investment map. The US-led war in
Iraq in 2003 dealt an economic blow to Jordan, which was dependent
on Iraq for discounted oil. It remains unclear how Jordan will
finance energy imports in the absence of such a deal. Other ongoing
challenges include fiscal adjustment to reduce the budget deficit
and broader investment incentives to promote job-creating ventures.