Jordan (2001) | Equatorial Guinea (2002) | |
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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 | 7 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia); Annobon, Bioko Norte, Bioko Sur, Centro Sur, Kie-Ntem, Litoral, Wele-Nzas |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
37.23% (male 980,345; female 938,081) 15-64 years: 59.44% (male 1,633,579; female 1,429,631) 65 years and over: 3.33% (male 84,815; female 86,927) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 42.4% (male 106,061; female 105,071)
15-64 years: 53.8% (male 128,489; female 139,732) 65 years and over: 3.8% (male 8,385; female 10,406) (2002 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, barley, citrus, tomatoes, melons, olives; sheep, goats, poultry | coffee, cocoa, rice, yams, cassava (tapioca), bananas, palm oil nuts; livestock; timber |
Airports | 18 (2000 est.) | 3 (2001) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
15 over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 6 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
3 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
total: 1
under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
Area | total:
92,300 sq km land: 91,971 sq km water: 329 sq km |
total: 28,051 sq km
land: 28,051 sq km water: 0 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly smaller than Indiana | slightly smaller than Maryland |
Background | For most of its history since independence from British administration in 1946, Jordan was ruled by King HUSSEIN (1953-1999). 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, through several wars and coup attempts. In 1989 he resumed parliamentary elections and gradually permitted political liberalization; in 1994 a formal peace treaty was signed 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 established his domestic priorities. | Composed of a mainland portion and five inhabited islands, Equatorial Guinea gained independence in 1968 after 190 years of Spanish rule. The tiny country, one of the smallest on the African continent, has been ruled by President OBIANG NGUEM MBASOGO since he seized power in a coup in 1979. Although nominally a constitutional democracy since 1991, the 1996 and 2002 presidential elections - as well as the 1999 legislative elections - were widely seen as being flawed. |
Birth rate | 25.44 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 37.33 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$2.8 billion expenditures: $3.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
revenues: $200 million
expenditures: $158 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Amman | Malabo |
Climate | mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April) | tropical; always hot, humid |
Coastline | 26 km | 296 km |
Constitution | 8 January 1952 | approved by national referendum 17 November 1991; amended January 1995 |
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 |
conventional long form: Republic of Equatorial Guinea
conventional short form: Equatorial Guinea local long form: Republica de Guinea Ecuatorial local short form: Guinea Ecuatorial former: Spanish Guinea |
Currency | Jordanian dinar (JOD) | Communaute Financiere Africaine franc (XAF); note - responsible authority is the Bank of the Central African States |
Death rate | 2.62 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 12.83 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Debt - external | $8 billion (2000 est.) | $225 million (2000 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador William J. BURNS embassy: Abdoum, Amman mailing address: P. O. Box 354, Amman 11118 Jordan; APO AE 09892-0200 telephone: [962] (6) 5920101 FAX: [962] (6) 5920121 |
chief of mission: Ambassador George McDade STAPLES; note - the US does not have an embassy in Equatorial Guinea (embassy closed September 1995); the US ambassador to Cameroon is accredited to Equatorial Guinea; the US State Department is considering opening a Consulate Agency in Malabo |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Marwan Jamil MUASHER chancery: 3504 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 966-2664 FAX: [1] (202) 966-3110 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Pastor Micha ONDO BILE
chancery: 2020 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 518-5700 FAX: [1] (202) 528-5252 |
Disputes - international | none | tripartite maritime boundary and economic zone dispute with Cameroon and Nigeria is currently before the ICJ; maritime boundary dispute with Gabon because of disputed sovereignty over islands in Corisco Bay |
Economic aid - recipient | ODA, $850 million (1996 est.) | $33.8 million (1995) (1995) |
Economy - overview | Jordan is a small Arab country with inadequate supplies of water and other natural resources such as oil. The Persian Gulf crisis, which began in August 1990, aggravated Jordan's already serious economic problems, forcing the government to stop most debt payments and suspend rescheduling negotiations. Aid from Gulf Arab states, worker remittances, and trade revenues contracted. Refugees flooded the country, producing serious balance-of-payments problems, stunting GDP growth, and straining government resources. The economy rebounded in 1992, largely due to the influx of capital repatriated by workers returning from the Gulf. After averaging 9% in 1992-95, GDP growth averaged only 1.5% during 1996-99. In an attempt to spur growth, King ABDALLAH has undertaken limited economic reform, including partial privatization of some state-owned enterprises and Jordan's entry in January 2000 into the World Trade Organization (WTrO). Debt, poverty, and unemployment are fundamental ongoing economic problems. | The discovery and exploitation of large oil reserves have contributed to dramatic economic growth in recent years. Forestry, farming, and fishing are also major components of GDP. Subsistence farming predominates. Although pre-independence Equatorial Guinea counted on cocoa production for hard currency earnings, the neglect of the rural economy under successive regimes has diminished potential for agriculture-led growth (the government has stated its intention to reinvest some oil revenue into agriculture). A number of aid programs sponsored by the World Bank and the IMF have been cut off since 1993 because of corruption and mismanagement. No longer eligible for concessional financing because of large oil revenues, the government has been unsuccessfully trying to agree on a "shadow" fiscal management program with the World Bank and IMF. Businesses, for the most part, are owned by government officials and their family members. Undeveloped natural resources include titanium, iron ore, manganese, uranium, and alluvial gold. Boosts in production and higher world oil prices stimulated growth in 2002, with oil accounting for 90% of increased exports. |
Electricity - consumption | 6.594 billion kWh (1999) | 20.46 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - exports | 4 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - imports | 407 million kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production | 6.657 billion kWh (1999) | 22 million kWh (2000) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
99.79% hydro: 0.21% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 91%
hydro: 9% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2000) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Jabal Ram 1,734 m |
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Pico Basile 3,008 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification | tap water is not potable; deforestation |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Ship Pollution
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1% | Bioko (primarily Bubi, some Fernandinos), Rio Muni (primarily Fang), Europeans less than 1,000, mostly Spanish |
Exchange rates | Jordanian dinars per US dollar - 0.7090 (1996-present )
note: since May 1989, the Jordanian dinar has been pegged to a group of currencies |
Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XAF) per US dollar - 742.79 (January 2002), 733.04 (2001), 711.98 (2000), 615.70 (1999), 589.95 (1998), 583.67 (1997); note - from 1 January 1999, the XAF is pegged to the euro at a rate of 655.957 XAF per euro |
Executive branch | chief of state:
King ABDALLAH II (since 7 February 1999); Crown Prince HAMZAH (half brother of the monarch, born 29 March 1980) head of government: Prime Minister Ali Abul RAGHEB (since 19 June 2000) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
chief of state: President Brig. Gen. (Ret.) Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO (since 3 August 1979 when he seized power in a military coup)
head of government: Prime Minister Candido Muatetema RIVAS (since 26 February 2001); First Deputy Prime Minister Miguel OYONO NDONG (since NA January 1998); Deputy Prime Minister Demetrio Elo NDONG NZE FUMU (since NA January 1998) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; election last held 15 December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2009); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO reelected president; percent of vote - Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO 97.1%, Celestino Bonifacio BACALE 2.2%; elections marred by widespread fraud |
Exports | $2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $2.1 billion f.o.b. (2001 est.) |
Exports - commodities | phosphates, fertilizers, potash, agricultural products, manufactures | petroleum, timber, cocoa |
Exports - partners | India, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, EU, Indonesia, UAE, Lebanon, Kuwait, Syria, Ethiopia | China 24%, Japan 7%, US 7%, South Korea 5% (1999) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 January - 31 December |
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 | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red with a blue isosceles triangle based on the hoist side and the coat of arms centered in the white band; the coat of arms has six yellow six-pointed stars (representing the mainland and five offshore islands) above a gray shield bearing a silk-cotton tree and below which is a scroll with the motto UNIDAD, PAZ, JUSTICIA (Unity, Peace, Justice) |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $17.3 billion (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1.04 billion (2001 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
3% industry: 25% services: 72% (1998 est.) |
agriculture: 20%
industry: 60% services: 20% (1999 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $3,500 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,100 (2001 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2000 est.) | 6% (2001 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 31 00 N, 36 00 E | 2 00 N, 10 00 E |
Geography - note | - | insular and continental regions rather widely separated |
Heliports | 1 (2000 est.) | - |
Highways | total:
8,000 km paved: 8,000 km unpaved: 0 km (2000 est.) |
total: 2,880 km
paved: 0 km unpaved: 2,880 km (1996) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.4% highest 10%: 34.7% (1991) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Imports | $4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) | $736 million f.o.b. (2001) |
Imports - commodities | crude oil, machinery, transport equipment, food, live animals, manufactured goods | petroleum sector equipment, manufactured goods and equipment |
Imports - partners | Iraq, Germany, US, Japan, UK, Italy, Turkey, Malaysia, Syria, China | US 60%, France 12%, Spain 8%, Italy 6% (1999) |
Independence | 25 May 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration) | 12 October 1968 (from Spain) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3.8% (2000 est.) | 7.4% (1994 est.) |
Industries | phosphate mining, petroleum refining, cement, potash, light manufacturing, tourism | petroleum, fishing, sawmilling, natural gas |
Infant mortality rate | 20.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 90.96 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 0.7% (2000 est.) | 6% (2001 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTAET, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO | ACCT, ACP, AfDB, BDEAC, CEEAC, CEMAC, ECA, FAO, FZ, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OAU, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WToO, WTrO (applicant) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 5 (2000) | 1 (2002) |
Irrigated land | 630 sq km (1993 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Court of Cassation; Supreme Court (court of final appeal) | Supreme Tribunal |
Labor force | 1.15 million
note: in addition, at least 300,000 workers are employed abroad (1997 est.) |
NA |
Labor force - by occupation | industry 11.4%, commerce, restaurants, and hotels 10.5%, construction 10%, transport and communications 8.7%, agriculture 7.4%, other services 52% (1992) | - |
Land boundaries | total:
1,619 km border countries: Iraq 181 km, Israel 238 km, Saudi Arabia 728 km, Syria 375 km, West Bank 97 km |
total: 539 km
border countries: Cameroon 189 km, Gabon 350 km |
Land use | arable land:
4% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 9% forests and woodland: 1% other: 85% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 4.63%
permanent crops: 3.57% other: 91.8% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Arabic (official), English widely understood among upper and middle classes | Spanish (official), French (official), pidgin English, Fang, Bubi, Ibo |
Legal 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 | partly based on Spanish civil law and tribal custom |
Legislative branch | bicameral National Assembly or Majlis al-'Umma consists of the Senate (a 40-member body appointed by the monarch from designated categories of public figures; members serve four-year terms) and the House of Representatives (80 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
elections: House of Representatives - last held 4 November 1997 (next to be held NA November 2001) election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - National Constitutional Party 2, Arab Land Party 1, independents 75, other 2 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 |
unicameral House of People's Representatives or Camara de Representantes del Pueblo (80 seats; members directly elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held 7 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - PDGE 80%, UP 6%, CPDS 5%; seats by party - PDGE 75, UP 4 and CPDS 1 note: opposition parties have refused to take up their seats in the House to protest widespread irregularities in the 1999 legislative elections |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
77.53 years male: 75.1 years female: 80.12 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 54.35 years
male: 52.26 years female: 56.5 years (2002 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 86.6% male: 93.4% female: 79.4% (1995 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 78.5% male: 89.6% female: 68.1% (1995 est.) |
Location | Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia | Western Africa, bordering the Bight of Biafra, between Cameroon and Gabon |
Map references | Middle East | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea:
3 NM |
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total:
6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 40,919 GRT/57,777 DWT ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 3, container 1, roll on/roll off 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 6 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 14,413 GRT/16,251 DWT
ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 3, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1 (2002 est.) |
Military branches | Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF; includes Royal Jordanian Land Force, Royal Naval Force, and Royal Jordanian Air Force); Ministry of the Interior's Public Security Force (falls under JAF only in wartime or crisis situations) | Army, Navy, Air Force, Rapid Intervention Force, National Police |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $608.9 million (FY98/99) | $27.5 million (FY01) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 7.8% (FY98/99) | 2.5% (FY01) |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,458,571 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 112,664 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,034,109 (2001 est.) |
males age 15-49: 57,194 (2002 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | 18 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
57,131 (2001 est.) |
- |
National holiday | Independence Day, 25 May (1946) | Independence Day, 12 October (1968) |
Nationality | noun:
Jordanian(s) adjective: Jordanian |
noun: Equatorial Guinean(s) or Equatoguinean(s)
adjective: Equatorial Guinean or Equatoguinean |
Natural hazards | droughts | violent windstorms, flash floods |
Natural resources | phosphates, potash, shale oil | oil, petroleum, timber, small unexploited deposits of gold, manganese, uranium |
Net migration rate | 7.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | NEGL migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 209 km; note - may not be in use | - |
Political parties and leaders | Al-Umma (Nation) Party [Ahmad al-HANANDEH, secretary general]; Arab Land Party [Dr. Muhammad al-'ORAN, secretary general]; Jordanian Democratic Popular Unity Party [Sa'eed THIYAB, secretary general]; National Constitutional Party [Abdul Hadi MAJALI, secretary general] | Convergence Party for Social Democracy or CPDS [Placido MIKO Abogo]; Democratic Party for Equatorial Guinea or PDGE (ruling party) [Teodoro OBIANG NGUEMA MBASOGO]; Party for Progress of Equatorial Guinea or PPGE [Severo MOTO]; Popular Action of Equatorial Guinea or APGE [Miguel Esono EMAN]; Popular Union or UP [Andres Moises Bda ADA]; Progressive Democratic Alliance or ADP [Victorino Bolekia BONAY]; Union of Independent Democrats of UDI [Daniel OYONO] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Council of Professional Association Presidents [Ahmad al-QADIRI, chairman]; Jordanian Press Association [Sayf al-SHARIF, president]; Muslim Brotherhood [Abd-al-Majid DHUNAYBAT, secretary general] | NA |
Population | 5,153,378 (July 2001 est.) | 498,144 (July 2002 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 30% (1998 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 3% (2001 est.) | 2.45% (2002 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Al 'Aqabah | Bata, Luba, Malabo |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (1999) | AM 0, FM 3, shortwave 5 (2002) |
Radios | 1.66 million (1997) | 180,000 (1997) |
Railways | total:
677 km narrow gauge: 677 km 1.050-m gauge (2000) |
total: 0 km |
Religions | Sunni Muslim 92%, Christian 6% (majority Greek Orthodox, but some Greek Catholics, Roman Catholics, Syrian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, and Protestant denominations), other 2% (several small Shi'a Muslim and Druze populations) (2000 est.) | nominally Christian and predominantly Roman Catholic, pagan practices |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.14 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.98 male(s)/female total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.81 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
Suffrage | 20 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal adult |
Telephone system | general assessment:
service has improved recently with the 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 is made of mobile cellular systems; Internet service is available international: 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 |
general assessment: poor system with adequate government services
domestic: NA international: international communications from Bata and Malabo to African and European countries; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 403,000 (1997) | 6,000 (1998) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 11,500 (1995) | 300 (1998) |
Television broadcast stations | 20 (plus 96 repeaters) (1995) | 1 (2002) |
Terrain | mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of the Jordan River | coastal plains rise to interior hills; islands are volcanic |
Total fertility rate | 3.29 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 4.81 children born/woman (2002 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 15% official rate; actual rate is 25%-30% (1999 est.) | 30% (1998 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |