Presentation made by Tommy Rainville Jordan Flag of Jordan Map of Jordan Presentation made by Tommy Rainville

Geography Jordan Location: Middle East, northwest of Saudi Arabia, between Israel (to the west) and Iraq Area: 89,342 sq km, which is a little smaller then India Natural Resources: phosphates, potash, shale oil Terrain: mostly desert plateau in east, highland area in west; Great Rift Valley separates East and West Banks of the Jordan River Highest elevation: Jabal Umm ad Dami 1,854 m Natural Hazards: droughts; periodic earthquakes Environmental current issues: limited natural freshwater resources; deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification

General Information Nationality: Jordanian Hashemite Kingdom Nationality: Jordanian Ethnic groups: Arab 98%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1% Languages: Arabic (official), English (widely understood among upper and middle classes) Religions: Sunni Muslim 92% (official), Christian 6% (majority Greek Orthodox, but some Greek and Roman Catholics, Syrian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Armenian Orthodox, and Protestant denominations), other 2% (several small Shia Muslim and Druze populations) (2001 est.) Jordan is about the size of Indiana.

General Information cont. Population: 6,508,271 (July 2011 est.) Birth Rate: 0.984% (2011 est.) Capital: Amman Sex Ratio: 1.06, more men till around 65 years old then the ratio changes from 1.06 to .97 Life Expectancy: 80 years old HIV/AIDS: fewer then 500 people have it To the left is a part of Jordan’s desert. To the other left it one of Jordan’s cliffs along the 26 miles of ocean that this country borders.

Government Type: constitutional monarchy Independence day: Independence Day, 25 May (1946) Legal system: mixed legal system of civil law and Islamic religious law; judicial review of legislative acts in a specially provided High Tribunal Chief of State: King Abdullah II (since 7 February 1999); Crown Prince Hussein (born 28 June 1994), eldest son of King Abdullah II Head of government: Prime Minister Awn Shawkat Khasawnah (since 24 October 2011); Deputy Prime Minister Tawfiq Kreishan (since 2 July 2011) Cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister in consultation with the monarch; note - on 1 February 2011 the King dismissed the cabinet and designated Marouf al-Bakhit the new prime minister National Symbol: eagle Jordan's King Abdullah II An eagle

Economy Overview Jordan's economy is among the smallest in the Middle East, with insufficient supplies of water, oil, and other natural resources, underlying the government's heavy reliance on foreign assistance. Other economic challenges for the government include chronic high rates of poverty, unemployment, inflation, and a large budget deficit. Since assuming the throne in 1999, King ABDALLAH has implemented significant economic reforms, such as opening the trade regime, privatizing state-owned companies, and eliminating most fuel subsidies, which in the past few years have spurred economic growth by attracting foreign investment and creating some jobs. The global economic slowdown, however, has depressed Jordan's GDP growth. Export-oriented sectors such as manufacturing, mining, and the transport of re-exports have been hit the hardest. The Government approved two supplementary budgets in 2010, but sweeping tax cuts planned for 2010 did not materialize because of Amman's need for additional revenue to cover excess spending. The budget deficit is likely to remain high, at 5-6% of GDP, and Amman likely will continue to depend heavily on foreign assistance to finance the deficit in 2011. Jordan's financial sector has been relatively isolated from the international financial crisis because of its limited exposure to overseas capital markets. Jordan is currently exploring nuclear power generation to forestall energy shortfalls.

Economy GDP: $34.53 billion (2010 est.) GDP real growth rate: 3.1% (2010 est.) Population below poverty line: 14.2% (2002) Unemployment rate: 12.5% (2010 est.) Public debt: 61.2% of GDP (2010 est.) Agricultural products: citrus, tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, strawberries, stone fruits; sheep, poultry, dairy

Relationship with U.S The United States and Jordan have had a good relationship for over four decades. U.S. policy seeks to reinforce Jordan's commitment to peace, stability, and moderation. Through economic and military assistance and through close political cooperation, the United States has helped Jordan maintain its stability and prosperity. The United States has provided Jordan with economic assistance totaling more than $9 billion since 1952. Funds to develop health care, education, construction to increase water availability.

Sharia in Jordan The main law that Jordan is based of is Sharia. This means that the Islamic law is very active in Jordan. September 1970 was the last conflict Jordan had, it was known as Black September

Human Rights Human Rights in Jordan concerns many outside and in the country. Problems: Abuse of foreign domestic workers. Restricted freedoms of assembly and association. Legal and societal discrimination and harassment of women remain a concern. Jordan has been working on all of this and has been getting better but the matter still is that Jordan’s human rights are not very good.

Current Events They have been recent protests on the government. This resulted in firing the cabinet ministers. The Muslim Brotherhood, one of the largest opposition groups in Jordan, on January 26 urged Jordanians to pour into streets later in the week to protest against Prime Minister Samir Rifai's economic policies and the political situation in the country.

Current events cont. On February 1, the Royal Palace announced that King Abdullah II has sacked the government as a consequence of the street protests and has asked Marouf al-Bahkit, an ex-army general, to form a new cabinet. On 28 March, three days after deadly clashes between protesters and supporters of the king, King Abdullah II called for national unity, telling his citizens to avoid "any behavior or attitude that would affect our unity."

Credits/Bibliography https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/jo.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jordan%E2%80%93United_States_relations http://www.rad-aid.org/countries.aspx?pageName=jordan http://www.mapsofworld.com/flags/jordan-flag.html http://www.desktopwallpaperhd.com/wallpapers/Landscape-desert-jordan-photography-staticfiles-image-shared-images-129691.html http://travel.nationalgeographic.com/travel/countries/jordan-guide/ http://archive.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=jordanian-government-expresses-commitment-to-media-reform-2010-12-29 http://www.alaska-in-pictures.com/crying-eagle-5211-pictures.htm http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_Jordan