Georgia (2001) | Jordan (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | 53 rayons (raionebi, singular - raioni), 9 cities* (k'alak'ebi, singular - k'alak'i), and 2 autonomous republics** (avtomnoy respubliki, singular - avtom respublika); Abashis, Abkhazia or Ap'khazet'is Avtonomiuri Respublika** (Sokhumi), Adigenis, Ajaria or Acharis Avtonomiuri Respublika** (Bat'umi), Akhalgoris, Akhalk'alak'is, Akhalts'ikhis, Akhmetis, Ambrolauris, Aspindzis, Baghdat'is, Bolnisis, Borjomis, Chiat'ura*, Ch'khorotsqus, Ch'okhatauris, Dedop'listsqaros, Dmanisis, Dushet'is, Gardabanis, Gori*, Goris, Gurjaanis, Javis, K'arelis, Kaspis, Kharagaulis, Khashuris, Khobis, Khonis, K'ut'aisi*, Lagodekhis, Lanch'khut'is, Lentekhis, Marneulis, Martvilis, Mestiis, Mts'khet'is, Ninotsmindis, Onis, Ozurget'is, P'ot'i*, Qazbegis, Qvarlis, Rust'avi*, Sach'kheris, Sagarejos, Samtrediis, Senakis, Sighnaghis, T'bilisi*, T'elavis, T'erjolis, T'et'ritsqaros, T'ianet'is, Tqibuli*, Ts'ageris, Tsalenjikhis, Tsalkis, Tsqaltubo*, Vanis, Zestap'onis, Zugdidi*, Zugdidis
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses) |
12 governorates (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Ajlun, Al 'Aqabah, Al Balqa', Al Karak, Al Mafraq, 'Amman, At Tafilah, Az Zarqa', Irbid, Jarash, Ma'an, Madaba |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
19.59% (male 498,575; female 478,663) 15-64 years: 67.91% (male 1,632,338; female 1,755,910) 65 years and over: 12.5% (male 241,824; female 381,975) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 34.5% (male 1,015,084/female 973,220)
15-64 years: 61.7% (male 1,897,643/female 1,656,570) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 106,168/female 111,047) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | citrus, grapes, tea, vegetables, potatoes; livestock | wheat, barley, citrus, tomatoes, melons, olives; sheep, goats, poultry |
Airports | 31 (2000 est.) | 17 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
16 over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 8 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 15
over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
15 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 6 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
under 914 m: 2 (2004 est.) |
Area | total:
69,700 sq km land: 69,700 sq km water: 0 sq km |
total: 92,300 sq km
land: 91,971 sq km water: 329 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than South Carolina | slightly smaller than Indiana |
Background | Georgia was absorbed into the Russian Empire in the 19th century. Independent for three years (1918-1921) following the Russian revolution, it was forcibly incorporated into the USSR until the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991. Russian troops remain garrisoned at four military bases and as peacekeepers in the separatist regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia (but are scheduled to withdraw from two of the bases by July 2001). Despite a badly degraded transportation network - brought on by ethnic conflict, criminal activities, and fuel shortages - the country continues to move toward a market economy and greater integration with Western institutions. | For most of its history since independence from British administration in 1946, Jordan was ruled by King HUSSEIN (1953-99). A pragmatic ruler, he successfully navigated competing pressures from the major powers (US, USSR, and UK), various Arab states, Israel, and a large internal Palestinian population, despite several wars and coup attempts. In 1989 he reinstituted parliamentary elections and gradual political liberalization; in 1994 he signed a formal peace treaty with Israel. King ABDALLAH II - the eldest son of King HUSSEIN and Princess MUNA - assumed the throne following his father's death in February 1999. Since then, he has consolidated his power and undertaken an aggressive economic reform program. Jordan acceded to the World Trade Organization in 2000, and began to participate in the European Free Trade Association in 2001. After a two-year delay, parliamentary and municipal elections took place in the summer of 2003. The Prime Minister and government appointed in April 2005 declared they would build upon the previous government's achievements to respect political and human rights and improve living standards. |
Birth rate | 11.18 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 21.76 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$437 million expenditures: $626 million, including capital expenditures of $60 million (1999) |
revenues: $3.483 billion
expenditures: $3.616 billion, including capital expenditures of $782 million (2004 est.) |
Capital | T'bilisi | 'Amman |
Climate | warm and pleasant; Mediterranean-like on Black Sea coast | mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April) |
Coastline | 310 km | 26 km |
Constitution | adopted 17 October 1995 | 1 January 1952; amended 1974, 1976, 1984 |
Country name | conventional long form:
none conventional short form: Georgia local long form: none local short form: Sak'art'velo former: Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic |
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 |
Currency | lari (GEL) | - |
Death rate | 14.58 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 2.63 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.9 billion (2000) | $7.32 billion (2004 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Kenneth S. YALOWITZ embassy: #25 Antoneli Street, T'bilisi 380026 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [995] (32) 989-967/68 FAX: [995] (32) 933-759 |
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires David M. HALE
embassy: Abdoun, Amman mailing address: P. O. Box 354, Amman 11118 Jordan; Unit 70200, Box 5, APO AE 09892-0200 telephone: [962] (6) 592-0101 FAX: [962] (6) 592-4102 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Tedo JAPARIDZE chancery: Suite 300, 1615 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 387-2390 FAX: [1] (202) 393-4537 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Karim Tawfiq KAWAR
chancery: 3504 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-2664 FAX: [1] (202) 966-3110 |
Disputes - international | none | 2004 Agreement settles border dispute with Syria pending demarcation |
Economic aid - recipient | $212.7 million (1995) | ODA, $500 million (2004 est.) |
Economy - overview | Georgia's economy has traditionally revolved around Black Sea tourism; cultivation of citrus fruits, tea, and grapes; mining of manganese and copper; and output of a small industrial sector producing wine, metals, machinery, chemicals, and textiles. The country imports the bulk of its energy needs, including natural gas and oil products. Its only sizable internal energy resource is hydropower. Despite the severe damage the economy has suffered due to civil strife, Georgia, with the help of the IMF and World Bank, has made substantial economic gains since 1995, increasing GDP growth and slashing inflation. The Georgian economy continues to experience large budget deficits due to a failure to collect tax revenues. Georgia also still suffers from energy shortages; it privatized the distribution network in 1998, and deliveries are steadily improving. The country is pinning its hopes for long-term recovery on the development of an international transportation corridor through the key Black Sea ports of P'ot'i and Bat'umi. The growing trade deficit, continuing problems with tax evasion and corruption, and political uncertainties cloud the short-term economic picture. | 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 substantial headway with privatization. The government also has liberalized the trade regime sufficiently to secure Jordan's membership in the WTO (2000), a free trade accord with the US (2001), and an association agreement with the EU (2001). These measures have helped improve productivity and have put Jordan on the foreign investment map. Jordan imported most of its oil from Iraq, but the US-led war in Iraq in 2003 made Jordan more dependent on oil from other Gulf nations forcing the Jordanian government to raise retail petroleum product prices and the sales tax base. Jordan's export market, which is heavily dependent on exports to Iraq, was also affected by the war but recovered quickly while contributing to the Iraq recovery effort. The main challenges facing Jordan are reducing dependence on foreign grants, reducing the budget deficit, and creating investment incentives to promote job creation. |
Electricity - consumption | 7.117 billion kWh (1999) | 7.094 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 850 million kWh (1999) | 2 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 550 million kWh (1999) | 300 million kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 7.975 billion kWh (1999) | 7.307 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
20.38% hydro: 79.62% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Black Sea 0 m highest point: Mt'a Mqinvartsveri (Gora Kazbek) 5,048 m |
lowest point: Dead Sea -408 m
highest point: Jabal Ram 1,734 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution, particularly in Rust'avi; heavy pollution of Mtkvari River and the Black Sea; inadequate supplies of potable water; soil pollution from toxic chemicals | limited natural fresh water resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
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 |
Ethnic groups | Georgian 70.1%, Armenian 8.1%, Russian 6.3%, Azeri 5.7%, Ossetian 3%, Abkhaz 1.8%, other 5% | Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1% |
Exchange rates | lari per US dollar - 1.9798 (December 2000), 1.9762 (2000), 2.0245 (1999), 1.3898 (1998), 1.2975 (1997), 1.2628 (1996) | Jordanian dinars per US dollar - 0.709 (2004), 0.709 (2003), 0.709 (2002), 0.709 (2001), 0.709 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Eduard Amvrosiyevich SHEVARDNADZE (previously elected chairman of the Government Council 10 March 1992; Council has since been disbanded; previously elected chairman of Parliament 11 October 1992; president since 26 November 1995); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Eduard Amvrosiyevich SHEVARDNADZE (previously elected chairman of the Government Council 10 March 1992; Council has since been disbanded; previously elected chairman of Parliament 11 October 1992; president since 26 November 1995); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 9 April 2000 (next to be held NA 2005) election results: Eduard SHEVARDNADZE reelected president; percent of vote - Eduard SHEVARDNADZE 80% |
chief of state: King ABDALLAH II (since 7 February 1999); Prince HUSSEIN (born 1994), son of King ABDALLAH, is first in line to inherit the throne
head of government: Prime Minister Adnan BADRAN (since 7 April 2005); Deputy Prime Ministers Marwan al-MUASHER and Hisham al-TEL (since 3 July 2005) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
Exports | $372 million (2000 est.) | 0 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
Exports - commodities | citrus fruits, tea, wine, other agricultural products; diverse types of machinery and metals; chemicals; fuel reexports; textiles | clothing, phosphates, fertilizers, potash, vegetables, manufactures, pharmaceuticals |
Exports - partners | Russia 19%, Turkey 16%, Azerbaijan 8%, Armenia 6% (1999) | US 28.9%, Iraq 17.6%, India 7.1%, Saudi Arabia 5.6% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | maroon field with small rectangle in upper hoist side corner; rectangle divided horizontally with black on top, white below | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $22.8 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
32% industry: 23% services: 45% (1999 est.) |
agriculture: 2.4%
industry: 26% services: 71.5% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $4,600 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $4,500 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 1.9% (2000 est.) | 5.1% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 42 00 N, 43 30 E | 31 00 N, 36 00 E |
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 |
Heliports | - | 1 (2004 est.) |
Highways | total:
33,900 km paved: 29,500 km (these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather) unpaved: 4,400 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1990) |
total: 7,301 km
paved: 7,301 km unpaved: 0 km (2002) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3.3%
highest 10%: 29.8% (1997) |
Illicit drugs | limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for domestic consumption; used as transshipment point for opiates via Central Asia to Western Europe and Russia | - |
Imports | $898 million (2000 est.) | 100,000 bbl/day (2004 est.) |
Imports - commodities | fuel, grain and other foods, machinery and parts, transport equipment | crude oil, textile fabrics, machinery, transport equipment, manufactured goods |
Imports - partners | EU 22%, Russia 19%, Turkey 12%, US 12% (1999) | Saudi Arabia 19.8%, China 8.4%, Germany 6.8%, US 6.8% (2004) |
Independence | 9 April 1991 (from Soviet Union) | 25 May 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration) |
Industrial production growth rate | -0.3% (1998 est.) | 5% (2004 est.) |
Industries | steel, aircraft, machine tools, electric locomotives, trucks, tractors, textiles, shoes, chemicals, wood products, wine | phosphate mining, pharmaceuticals, petroleum refining, cement, potash, inorganic chemicals, light manufacturing, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 52.37 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 17.35 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 20.75 deaths/1,000 live births female: 13.75 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 4.1% (2000 est.) | 3.2% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | BSEC, CCC, CE, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 6 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 4,000 sq km (1993 est.) | 750 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges elected by the Supreme Council on the president's recommendation); Constitutional Court | Court of Cassation; Supreme Court (court of final appeal) |
Labor force | 3.08 million (1997) | 1.41 million (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | industry 20%, agriculture 40%, services 40% (1999 est.) | agriculture 5%, industry 12.5%, services 82.5% (2001 est.) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,461 km border countries: Armenia 164 km, Azerbaijan 322 km, Russia 723 km, Turkey 252 km |
total: 1,635 km
border countries: Iraq 181 km, Israel 238 km, Saudi Arabia 744 km, Syria 375 km, West Bank 97 km |
Land use | arable land:
9% permanent crops: 4% permanent pastures: 25% forests and woodland: 34% other: 28% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 2.67%
permanent crops: 1.83% other: 95.5% (2001) |
Languages | Georgian 71% (official), Russian 9%, Armenian 7%, Azeri 6%, other 7%
note: Abkhaz is the official language in Abkhazia |
Arabic (official), English widely understood among upper and middle classes |
Legal system | based on civil law system | based on Islamic law and French codes; judicial review of legislative acts in a specially provided High Tribunal; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Supreme Council (commonly referred to as Parliament) or Umaghiesi Sabcho (235 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 31 October and 14 November 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - CUG 41.85%, AGUR 25.65%, IWSG 7.8%, all other parties received less than 7% each; seats by party - CUG 130, AGUR 58, IWSG 15, Abkhaz deputies 12, independents 17, other 3 |
bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-'Umma consists of the Senate, also called the House of Notables (Majlis al-Ayan) (55 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) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - independents and others 89.6%, Islamic Action Front (IAF) 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 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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
64.57 years male: 61.04 years female: 68.28 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 78.24 years
male: 75.75 years female: 80.88 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 100% female: 98% (1989 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91.3% male: 95.9% female: 86.3% (2003 est.) |
Location | Southwestern Asia, bordering the Black Sea, between Turkey and Russia | Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia |
Map references | Commonwealth of Independent States | Middle East |
Maritime claims | NA | territorial sea: 3 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
37 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 131,316 GRT/190,289 DWT ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 25, chemical tanker 2, container 2, petroleum tanker 4, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 20 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 78,814 GRT/92,695 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 7, container 2, passenger/cargo 5, roll on/roll off 4 foreign-owned: 12 (Greece 3, UAE 9) registered in other countries: 14 (2005) |
Military - note | a CIS peacekeeping force consisting of Russian troops is deployed in the Abkhazia region of Georgia together with a UN military observer group; a Russian peacekeeping battalion is deployed in South Ossetia | - |
Military branches | Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force and Air Defense Forces, National Guard, Security Forces (internal and border troops) | Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF): Royal Jordanian Land Force, Royal Jordanian Navy, Royal Jordanian Air Force, and Special Operations Command (SOCOM); note - Public Security Directorate normally falls under Ministry of Interior but comes under JAF in wartime or crisis situations |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $23 million (FY00) | $1.46 billion (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.59% (FY00) | 14.6% (2004) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,296,199 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,024,574 (2001 est.) |
- |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
41,561 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 26 May (1918); note - 26 May 1918 is the date of independence from Soviet Russia, 9 April 1991 is the date of independence from the Soviet Union | Independence Day, 25 May (1946) |
Nationality | noun:
Georgian(s) adjective: Georgian |
noun: Jordanian(s)
adjective: Jordanian |
Natural hazards | earthquakes | droughts; periodic earthquakes |
Natural resources | forests, hydropower, manganese deposits, iron ore, copper, minor coal and oil deposits; coastal climate and soils allow for important tea and citrus growth | phosphates, potash, shale oil |
Net migration rate | -2.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 6.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 370 km; refined products 300 km; natural gas 440 km (1992) | gas 10 km; oil 743 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Citizen's Union of Georgia or CUG [Eduard SHEVARDNADZE]; Georgian United Communist Party or UCPG [Panteleimon GIORGADZE, chairman]; Industry Will Save Georgia or IWSG [Georgi TOPADZE]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Irina SARISHVILI-CHANTURIA]; Socialist Party or SPG [Temur GAMTSEMLIDZE]; Union for "Revival" Party or AGUR [Alsan ABASHIDZE]; United Republican Party or URP [Nodar NATADZE, chairman] | Al-Ajyal [Muhammad KHALAYLEH, secretary general]; Al-Umma (Nation) Party [Ahmad al-HANANDEH, secretary general]; Arab Land Party [Dr. Ayishah Salih HIJAZAYN, secretary general]; Ba'th Arab Progressive Party [Fu'ad DABBUR, secretary general]; Communist Party [Munir HAMARINAH, secretary general]; Constitutional National Party [Ahmad al-SHUNNAQ, secretary general; Democratic Arab Islamic Movement [Yusuf ABU BAKR, president]; Green Party [Muhammad BATAYNEH, secretary general]; Islamic Action Front [Hazma MANSOUR, secretary general]; Islamic al-Walsat Party [Marwan al-FAURI], secretary general; Jordanian Democratic Left Party [Musa MA'AYTEH, secretary general]; Jordanian Democratic Popular Unity Party [Sa'id Dhiyab Ali MUSTAFA, secretary general]; Jordanian People's Democratic (Hashd) Party [Ahmad YUSUF, secretary general]; Jordanian Progressive Party [Fawwaz al-ZUBI, secretary general]; Labor Party [Dr. Mazin Sulayman Jiryis HANNA, secretary general]; Muslim Centrist Party [leader NA]; National Action (Haqq) Party [Tariq al-KAYYALI, secretary general]; National Constitutional Party [Abdul Hadi MAJALI, secretary general]; National Movement for Direct Democracy [Mahmud al-NUWAYHI, secretary general]; Pan-Arab (Democratic) Movement [Mahmud al-NUWAYHI, secretary general]; (Arab) Socialist Ba'th Party [Taysir al-HIMSI, secretary general] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Georgian refugees from Abkhazia (Abkhaz faction in Georgian Parliament); separatist elements in the breakaway region of Abkhazia; supporters of the late ousted President Zviad GAMSAKHURDYA remain a source of opposition | 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] |
Population | 4,989,285 (July 2001 est.) | 5,759,732 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 60% (1999 est.) | 30% (2001 est.) |
Population growth rate | -0.59% (2001 est.) | 2.56% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Bat'umi, P'ot'i, Sokhumi | Al 'Aqabah |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 7, FM 12, shortwave 4 (1998) | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (1999) |
Radios | 3.02 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
1,583 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial lines broad gauge: 1,583 km 1.520-m gauge (1993) |
total: 505 km
narrow gauge: 505 km 1.050-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | Georgian Orthodox 65%, Muslim 11%, Russian Orthodox 10%, Armenian Apostolic 8%, unknown 6% | 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.) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.93 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.63 male(s)/female total population: 0.91 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.15 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
NA domestic: local - T'bilisi and K'ut'aisi have cellular telephone networks; urban telephone density is about 20 per 100 people; rural telephone density is about 4 per 100 people; intercity facilities include a fiber-optic line between T'bilisi and K'ut'aisi; nationwide pager service is available international: Georgia and Russia are working on a fiber-optic line between P'ot'i and Sochi (Russia); present international service is available by microwave, landline, and satellite through the Moscow switch; international electronic mail and telex service are available |
general assessment: service has improved recently with increased use of digital switching equipment, but better access to the telephone system is needed in the rural areas and easier access to pay telephones is needed by the urban public
domestic: microwave radio relay transmission and coaxial and fiber-optic cable are employed on trunk lines; considerable use of mobile cellular systems; Internet service is available international: country code - 962; satellite earth stations - 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; connection to international submarine cable FLAG (Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe); participant in MEDARABTEL; international links total about 4,000 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 620,000 (1997) | 622,600 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 30,000 (1997) | 1,325,300 (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 12 (plus repeaters) (1998) | 20 (plus 96 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | largely mountainous with Great Caucasus Mountains in the north and Lesser Caucasus Mountains in the south; Kolkhet'is Dablobi (Kolkhida Lowland) opens to the Black Sea in the west; Mtkvari River Basin in the east; good soils in river valley flood plains, foothills of Kolkhida Lowland | mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of the Jordan River |
Total fertility rate | 1.45 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.71 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 14.9% (1999 est.) | 15% official rate; unofficial rate is approximately 30% (2004 est.) |
Waterways | none | - |