Jordan
Chapter 3. The Economy
Mosaic of a man carrying a basket of grapes from the Byzantine Church of
Saint Lots and Saint Prokopius, Khirbat al Muhayyat, ca. 550
JORDAN, A SMALL NATION with a small population and sparse natural resources,
has long been known by its Arab neighbors as their "poor cousin." In the late
1980s, Jordan was compelled to import not only many capital and consumer goods
but also such vital commodities as fuel and food. Officials even discussed the
possibility of importing water. Nevertheless, the Jordanian economy flourished
in the 1970s as the gross domestic product (GDP--see
Glossary) enjoyed double-digit growth. The economy continued to fare well in the
early 1980s, despite a recessionary regional environment. Indeed, by the late
1980s, Jordanians had become measurably more affluent than many of their Arab
neighbors. The 1988 per capita GDP of approximately US$2,000 placed Jordan's
citizens well within the world's upper-middle income bracket.
Economic prosperity rested on three primary bases. Jordan's status as the
world's third largest producer of phosphates ensured a steady--if relatively
modest--flow of export income that offset some of its high import bills. More
important, Jordan received billions of dollars of invisible or unearned income
in the form of inflows of foreign aid and remittances from expatriates. These
financial inflows permitted domestic consumption to outpace production and
caused the gross national product (GNP--see
Glossary) to exceed the GDP. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, GNP exceeded GDP
by 10 percent to 25 percent. High financial inflows from the mid-1970s to the
mid-1980s allowed Jordan to maintain a low current account deficit; in some
years it registered a current account surplus, without much external borrowing
and despite trade and budget deficits. Jordan's economy, therefore, demonstrated
many of the characteristics of wealthier and more technologically advanced
rentier economies. Jordan also capitalized on its strategic geographic location,
its educated work force, and its free enterprise economy to become a regional
entrepôt and transit point for exports and imports between Western Europe and
the Middle East. Because of these factors, it also became a magnet for foreign
direct investment, and a purveyor of banking, insurance, and consulting services
to foreign clients. Jordan's heritage as a merchant middleman was centuries-old,
dating back to the Nabatean kingdom of Petra. Because the economy depended so
heavily on the professional service sector and remittance income from
expatriates, the government sometimes called Jordan's manpower the nation's most
valuable resource.
Jordan's economic strategy succeeded during the Middle East oil boom of the
1970s. In the late 1980s, however, as the worldwide plunge in oil prices
persisted, economic problems emerged. Foreign aid was cut, remittances declined,
and regional trade and transit activity was suppressed by lack of demand,
leading to a deterioration in the current account. The government was deeply
concerned about the economy's vulnerability to external forces. Jordan's economy
depended heavily on imported commodities and foreign aid, trade, investment, and
income. But because plans to increase self-sufficiency were only in the early
stages of implementation, a short-term decline in the national standard of
living and increased indebtedness loomed as the 1990s approached; observers
forecast that austerity would replace prosperity.
Data as of December 1989
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