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Compare Paracel Islands (2003) - Jordan (2006)

Compare Paracel Islands (2003) z Jordan (2006)

 Paracel Islands (2003)Jordan (2006)
 Paracel IslandsJordan
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
Age structure - 0-14 years: 33.8% (male 1,018,070/female 976,442)


15-64 years: 62.4% (male 1,966,794/female 1,716,255)


65 years and over: 3.9% (male 111,636/female 117,563) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products - wheat, barley, citrus, tomatoes, melons, olives; sheep, goats, poultry
Airports 1 (2002) 17 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways total: 1


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2002)
total: 15


over 3,047 m: 7


2,438 to 3,047 m: 6


914 to 1,523 m: 1


under 914 m: 1 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways - total: 2


under 914 m: 2 (2006)
Area total: NA sq km


land: NA sq km


water: 0 sq km
total: 92,300 sq km


land: 91,971 sq km


water: 329 sq km
Area - comparative NA slightly smaller than Indiana
Background The Paracel Islands are surrounded by productive fishing grounds and by potential oil and gas reserves. In 1932, French Indochina annexed the islands and set up a weather station on Pattle Island; maintenance was continued by its successor, Vietnam. China has occupied the Paracel Islands since 1974, when its troops seized a South Vietnamese garrison occupying the western islands. The islands are claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam. Following World War I and the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire, the UK received a mandate to govern much of the Middle East. Britain separated out a semi-autonomous region of Transjordan from Palestine in the early 1920s, and the area gained its independence in 1946; it adopted the name of Jordan in 1950. The country's long-time ruler was King HUSSEIN (1953-99). A pragmatic leader, 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 peace treaty with Israel. King ABDALLAH II, the son of King HUSSEIN, 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 appointed in November 2005 stated the government would focus on political reforms, improving conditions for the poor, and fighting corruption.
Birth rate - 21.25 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget - revenues: $2.8 billion


expenditures: $4.688 billion; including capital expenditures of $1.092 billion (2005 est.)
Capital - name: Amman


geographic coordinates: 31 57 N, 35 56 E


time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Thursday in March; ends last Friday in September
Climate tropical mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April)
Coastline 518 km 26 km
Constitution - 1 January 1952; amended 1954, 1955, 1958, 1960, 1965, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1984
Country name conventional long form: none


conventional short form: Paracel Islands
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
Death rate - 2.65 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external - $8.528 billion (2005 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US - chief of mission: Ambassador 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) 590-6000


FAX: [962] (6) 592-0121
Diplomatic representation in the US - 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 occupied by China, but claimed by Taiwan and Vietnam 2004 Agreement settles border dispute with Syria pending demarcation
Economic aid - recipient - ODA, $500 million (2004 est.)
Economy - overview China announced plans in 1997 to open the islands for tourism. 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 - 7.959 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports - 4 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports - 972 million kWh (2003)
Electricity - production - 7.517 billion kWh (2003)
Elevation extremes lowest point: South China Sea 0 m


highest point: unnamed location on Rocky Island 14 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, 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 - Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1%
Exchange rates - Jordanian dinars per US dollar - 0.709 (2005), 0.709 (2004), 0.709 (2003), 0.709 (2002), 0.709 (2001)
Executive branch - chief of state: King ABDALLAH II (since 7 February 1999); Prince HUSSEIN (born 1994), eldest son of King ABDALLAH, is first in line to inherit the throne


head of government: Prime Minister Marouf al-BAKHIT (since 24 November 2005); Deputy Prime Minister Ziad FARIZ (since 24 November 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 - 0 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Exports - commodities - clothing, phosphates, fertilizers, potash, vegetables, manufactures, pharmaceuticals
Exports - partners - US 29.4%, Iraq 15.6%, India 8.8%, Saudi Arabia 5.9% (2005)
Fiscal year - calendar year
Flag description - 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 - composition by sector - agriculture: 3.3%


industry: 28.7%


services: 68% (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate - 5.8% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates 16 30 N, 112 00 E 31 00 N, 36 00 E
Geography - note composed of 130 small coral islands and reefs divided into the northeast Amphitrite Group and the western Crescent Group 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 (2006)
Household income or consumption by percentage share - lowest 10%: 3.3%


highest 10%: 29.8% (1997)
Imports - 100,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Imports - commodities - crude oil, textile fabrics, machinery, transport equipment, manufactured goods
Imports - partners - Saudi Arabia 20.9%, China 8%, Germany 7.1%, US 6.2%, South Korea 4.1% (2005)
Independence - 25 May 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration)
Industrial production growth rate - 7.5% (2005 est.)
Industries - textiles, phosphate mining, fertilizers, pharmaceuticals, petroleum refining, cement, potash, inorganic chemicals, light manufacturing, tourism
Infant mortality rate - total: 16.76 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 20.04 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 13.28 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) - 4.5% (2005 est.)
International organization participation - 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, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, MINUSTAH, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO
Irrigated land 0 sq km (1998 est.) 750 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch - Court of Cassation; Supreme Court (court of final appeal)
Labor force - 1.46 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation - agriculture: 5%


industry: 12.5%


services: 82.5% (2001 est.)
Land boundaries 0 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: 0%


permanent crops: 0%


other: 100% (1998 est.)
arable land: 3.32%


permanent crops: 1.18%


other: 95.5% (2005)
Languages - Arabic (official), English widely understood among upper and middle classes
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 - 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 in 2007)


election results: House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - independents and other 89.6%, IAF 10.4%; seats by party - independents and other 92, IAF 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: 78.4 years


male: 75.9 years


female: 81.05 years (2006 est.)
Literacy - definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 91.3%


male: 95.9%


female: 86.3% (2003 est.)
Location Southeastern Asia, group of small islands and reefs in the South China Sea, about one-third of the way from central Vietnam to the northern Philippines Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia
Map references Southeast Asia Middle East
Maritime claims NA territorial sea: 3 nm
Merchant marine - total: 25 ships (1000 GRT or over) 346,698 GRT/501,060 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 9, container 2, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 4


foreign-owned: 11 (UAE 11)


registered in other countries: 15 (Bahamas 2, Panama 13) (2006)
Military - note occupied by China -
Military branches - Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF): Royal Jordanian Land Force, Royal Jordanian Navy, Royal Jordanian Air Force (Al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Malakiya al-Urduniya), Special Operations Command (Socom); Public Security Directorate (normally falls under Ministry of Interior, but comes under JAF in wartime or crisis situations) (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure - $1.4 billion (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP - 11.4% (2005 est.)
National holiday - Independence Day, 25 May (1946)
Nationality - noun: Jordanian(s)


adjective: Jordanian
Natural hazards typhoons droughts; periodic earthquakes
Natural resources none phosphates, potash, shale oil
Net migration rate - 6.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines - gas 426 km; oil 49 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders - al-Ahd Party; Arab Islamic Democratic Movement [Yusuf ABU BAKR, president]; Arab Land Party [Dr. Ayishah Salih HIJAZAYN, secretary general]; Arab Socialist Ba'th Party [Taysir al-HIMSI, secretary general]; Ba'th Arab Progressive Party [Fu'ad DABBUR, secretary general]; Freedom Party; Future Party; Islamic Action Front or IAF [Zaki Sa'ed BANI IRSHEID, secretary general]; Islamic Center Party [Marwan al-FAURI, secretary general]; Jordanian Arab Ansar Party; Jordanian Arab New Dawn Party; Jordanian Arab Party; Jordanian Citizens' Rights Movement; Jordanian Communist Party [Munir HAMARINAH, secretary general]; Jordanian Communist Workers Party; Jordanian Democratic Left Party [Musa MA'AYTEH, secretary general]; Jordanian Democratic Popular Unity Party [Sa'id Dhiyab Ali MUSTAFA, secretary general]; Jordanian Generations Party [Muhammad KHALAYLEH, secretary general]; Jordanian Green Party [Muhammad BATAYNEH, secretary general]; Jordanian Labor Party [Dr. Mazin Sulayman Jiryis HANNA, secretary general]; Jordanian Peace Party; Jordanian People's Committees Movement; Jordanian People's Democratic Party (Hashd) [Ahmad YUSUF, secretary general]; Jordanian Rafah Party; Jordanian Renaissance Party; Mission Party; Nation Party [Ahmad al-HANANDEH, secretary general]; National Action Party (Haqq) [Tariq al-KAYYALI, secretary general]; National Constitutional Party [Abdul Hadi MAJALI, secretary general]; National Popular Democratic Movement [Mahmud al-NUWAYHI, secretary general]; Progressive Party [Fawwaz al-ZUBI, secretary general]
Political pressure groups and leaders - Anti-Normalization Committee [Ali Abu SUKKAR, president vice chairman]; Jordan Bar Association [Hussein Mujalli, chairman]; Jordanian Press Association [Sayf al-SHARIF, president]; Muslim Brotherhood [Salem AL-FALAHAT, secretary general]
Population no indigenous inhabitants


note: there are scattered Chinese garrisons (July 2003 est.)
5,906,760 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line - 30% (2001 est.)
Population growth rate - 2.49% (2006 est.)
Ports and harbors small Chinese port facilities on Woody Island and Duncan Island being expanded -
Radio broadcast stations - AM 6, FM 5, shortwave 1 (1999)
Railways - total: 505 km


narrow gauge: 505 km 1.050-m gauge (2005)
Religions - 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: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.15 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.95 male(s)/female


total population: 1.1 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage - 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system - 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 - 617,300 (2004)
Telephones - mobile cellular - 1,594,500 (2004)
Television broadcast stations - 20 (plus 96 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain mostly low and flat mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of the Jordan River
Total fertility rate - 2.63 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate - 12.5% official rate; unofficial rate is approximately 30% (2004 est.)
Waterways none -
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