Martinique (2001) | Jordan (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | none (overseas department of France) | 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:
23.1% (male 49,016; female 47,653) 15-64 years: 66.77% (male 139,106; female 140,291) 65 years and over: 10.13% (male 18,893; female 23,495) (2001 est.) |
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.) |
Agriculture - products | pineapples, avocados, bananas, flowers, vegetables, sugarcane | wheat, barley, citrus, tomatoes, melons, olives; sheep, goats, poultry |
Airports | 2 (2000 est.) | 18 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
1 over 3,047 m: 1 (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 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
1 under 914 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
total:
3 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Area | total:
1,100 sq km land: 1,060 sq km water: 40 sq km |
total:
92,300 sq km land: 91,971 sq km water: 329 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly more than six times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Indiana |
Background | Colonized by France in 1635, the island has subsequently remained a French possession except for three brief periods of foreign occupation. | 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. |
Birth rate | 15.76 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 25.44 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$900 million expenditures: $2.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $140 million (1996) |
revenues:
$2.8 billion expenditures: $3.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.) |
Capital | Fort-de-France | Amman |
Climate | tropical; moderated by trade winds; rainy season (June to October); vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) every eight years on average; average temperature 17.3 degrees C; humid | mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April) |
Coastline | 350 km | 26 km |
Constitution | 28 September 1958 (French Constitution) | 8 January 1952 |
Country name | conventional long form:
Department of Martinique conventional short form: Martinique local long form: Departement de la Martinique local short form: Martinique |
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 | French franc (FRF); euro (EUR) | Jordanian dinar (JOD) |
Death rate | 6.39 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 2.62 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $180 million (1994) | $8 billion (2000 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas department of France | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas department of France) | 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 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas department of France) | 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 |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - recipient | $NA; note - substantial annual aid from France | ODA, $850 million (1996 est.) |
Economy - overview | The economy is based on sugarcane, bananas, tourism, and light industry. Agriculture accounts for about 6% of GDP and the small industrial sector for 11%. Sugar production has declined, with most of the sugarcane now used for the production of rum. Banana exports are increasing, going mostly to France. The bulk of meat, vegetable, and grain requirements must be imported, contributing to a chronic trade deficit that requires large annual transfers of aid from France. Tourism has become more important than agricultural exports as a source of foreign exchange. The majority of the work force is employed in the service sector and in administration. | 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. |
Electricity - consumption | 1.023 billion kWh (1999) | 6.594 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 4 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 407 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 1.1 billion kWh (1999) | 6.657 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel:
99.79% hydro: 0.21% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Montagne Pelee 1,397 m |
lowest point:
Dead Sea -408 m highest point: Jabal Ram 1,734 m |
Environment - current issues | NA | limited natural fresh water resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification |
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 |
Ethnic groups | African and African-white-Indian mixture 90%, white 5%, East Indian, Chinese less than 5% | Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 1.0659 (January 2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999); French francs per US dollar - 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997), 5.1155 (1996) | Jordanian dinars per US dollar - 0.7090 (1996-present )
note: since May 1989, the Jordanian dinar has been pegged to a group of currencies |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995); Prefect Jean-Francois CORDET (since NA) head of government: President of the General Council Claude LISE (since 22 March 1992); President of the Regional Council Alfred MARIE-JEANNE (since NA March 1998) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
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 |
Exports | $250 million (f.o.b., 1997) | $2 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products, bananas, rum, pineapples | phosphates, fertilizers, potash, agricultural products, manufactures |
Exports - partners | France 45%, Guadeloupe 28% (1997) | India, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, EU, Indonesia, UAE, Lebanon, Kuwait, Syria, Ethiopia |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | a light blue background is divided into four quadrants by a white cross; in the center of each rectangle is a white snake; the flag of France is used for official occasions | 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 |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $4.39 billion (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $17.3 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
6% industry: 11% services: 83% (1997 est.) |
agriculture:
3% industry: 25% services: 72% (1998 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,000 (1997 est.) | purchasing power parity - $3,500 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | NA% | 2% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 14 40 N, 61 00 W | 31 00 N, 36 00 E |
Heliports | - | 1 (2000 est.) |
Highways | total:
2,105 km (2000) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km |
total:
8,000 km paved: 8,000 km unpaved: 0 km (2000 est.) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
2.4% highest 10%: 34.7% (1991) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for cocaine and marijuana bound for the US and Europe | - |
Imports | $2 billion (c.i.f., 1997) | $4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) |
Imports - commodities | petroleum products, crude oil, foodstuffs, construction materials, vehicles, clothing and other consumer goods | crude oil, machinery, transport equipment, food, live animals, manufactured goods |
Imports - partners | France 62%, Venezuela 6%, Germany 4%, Italy 4%, US 3% (1997) | Iraq, Germany, US, Japan, UK, Italy, Turkey, Malaysia, Syria, China |
Independence | none (overseas department of France) | 25 May 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration) |
Industrial production growth rate | NA% | 3.8% (2000 est.) |
Industries | construction, rum, cement, oil refining, sugar, tourism | phosphate mining, petroleum refining, cement, potash, light manufacturing, tourism |
Infant mortality rate | 7.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | 20.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.9% (1990) | 0.7% (2000 est.) |
International organization participation | FZ, WCL, WFTU | 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 |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 2 (2000) | 5 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 40 sq km (1993 est.) | 630 sq km (1993 est.) |
Judicial branch | Court of Appeal or Cour d'Appel | Court of Cassation; Supreme Court (court of final appeal) |
Labor force | 170,000 (1997) | 1.15 million
note: in addition, at least 300,000 workers are employed abroad (1997 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 10%, industry 17%, services 73% (1997) | 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 | 0 km | total:
1,619 km border countries: Iraq 181 km, Israel 238 km, Saudi Arabia 728 km, Syria 375 km, West Bank 97 km |
Land use | arable land:
8% permanent crops: 8% permanent pastures: 17% forests and woodland: 44% other: 23% (1993 est.) |
arable land:
4% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 9% forests and woodland: 1% other: 85% (1993 est.) |
Languages | French, Creole patois | Arabic (official), English widely understood among upper and middle classes |
Legal system | French 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 |
Legislative branch | unicameral General Council or Conseil General (45 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Assembly or Conseil Regional (41 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held NA March 2000 (next to be held NA 2006); Regional Assembly - last held on 15 March 1998 (next to be held by March 2004) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; note - the PPM won a plurality; Regional Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR-UDF 14, MIM 13, PPM 7, left parties 4, PMS 3 note: Martinique elects 2 seats to the French Senate; elections last held NA September 1998 (next to be held September 2001); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - PPM 2; Martinique also elects 4 seats to the French National Assembly; elections last held 1 June 1997 (next to be held NA 2002); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - RPR 2, PS 1, independent 1 |
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 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
78.41 years male: 79.11 years female: 77.69 years (2001 est.) |
total population:
77.53 years male: 75.1 years female: 80.12 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 92% female: 93% (1982 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 86.6% male: 93.4% female: 79.4% (1995 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Trinidad and Tobago | Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Middle East |
Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone:
200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
territorial sea:
3 NM |
Merchant marine | none (2000 est.) | 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.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of France | - |
Military branches | French forces (Army, Navy, Air Force), Gendarmerie | 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) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $608.9 million (FY98/99) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 7.8% (FY98/99) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
1,458,571 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
1,034,109 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
57,131 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) | Independence Day, 25 May (1946) |
Nationality | noun:
Martiniquais (singular and plural) adjective: Martiniquais |
noun:
Jordanian(s) adjective: Jordanian |
Natural hazards | hurricanes, flooding, and volcanic activity (an average of one major natural disaster every five years) | droughts |
Natural resources | coastal scenery and beaches, cultivable land | phosphates, potash, shale oil |
Net migration rate | -0.08 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 7.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | - | crude oil 209 km; note - may not be in use |
Political parties and leaders | Martinique Independence Movement or MIM [Alfred MARIE-JEANNE]; Martinique Progressive Party or PPM [Camille DARSIERES]; Martinique Socialist Party or PMS [Ernest WAN-AJOUHU]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Michel CHARLONE]; Union for French Democracy or UDF (replaced by Martinique Forces of Progress) [Jean MAREN] | 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] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | Association for the Protection of Martinique's Heritage (ecologist) [Garcin MALSA]; Caribbean Revolutionary Alliance or ARC; Central Union for Martinique Workers or CSTM [Marc PULVAR]; Frantz Fanon Circle; League of Workers and Peasants; Proletarian Action Group or GAP; Socialist Revolution Group or GRS [Philippe PIERRE-CHARLES] | Council of Professional Association Presidents [Ahmad al-QADIRI, chairman]; Jordanian Press Association [Sayf al-SHARIF, president]; Muslim Brotherhood [Abd-al-Majid DHUNAYBAT, secretary general] |
Population | 418,454 (July 2001 est.) | 5,153,378 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 30% (1998 est.) |
Population growth rate | 0.93% (2001 est.) | 3% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Fort-de-France, La Trinite | Al 'Aqabah |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 0, FM 14, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (1999) |
Radios | 82,000 (1997) | 1.66 million (1997) |
Railways | 0 km | total:
677 km narrow gauge: 677 km 1.050-m gauge (2000) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 95%, Hindu and pagan African 5% | 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.) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.02 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.8 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
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.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 20 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
domestic facilities are adequate domestic: NA international: microwave radio relay to Guadeloupe, Dominica, and Saint Lucia; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
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 |
Telephones - main lines in use | 170,000 (1997) | 403,000 (1997) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 15,000 (1997) | 11,500 (1995) |
Television broadcast stations | 11 (plus nine repeaters) (1997) | 20 (plus 96 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | mountainous with indented coastline; dormant volcano | mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of the Jordan River |
Total fertility rate | 1.8 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 3.29 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 27.2% (1998) | 15% official rate; actual rate is 25%-30% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | none | none |