Government and power in Jordan

Who leads Jordan, how the World Bank's governance indicators score it, how many women sit in parliament and government, what the state spends and taxes, and the official bodies that hold power to account. System of government: Unitary constitutional monarchy.

Who leads Jordan?

• Head of state: King Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein (King of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan)
• Head of government: Jafar Hassan (Prime Minister and Minister for Defence of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan)
• Foreign minister: Ayman Safadi (Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan)

Source: Heads of State, Heads of Government, Ministers for Foreign Affairs: Public List (United Nations Protocol and Liaison Service), list dated 15 October 2026. All world leaders.

Governance scores

The World Bank's Worldwide Governance Indicators combine surveys of households and firms with assessments by public, private and non-governmental bodies. Each score runs from 0 to 100; higher means the sources rate governance better. They measure perceptions, and each has a margin of error.

Voice and accountability

Measures how far citizens can choose their government, and freedom of expression, association and the media.

Political stability and absence of violence

Measures the likelihood of political instability or politically motivated violence, including terrorism.

Government effectiveness

Measures the quality of public services and the civil service, and how independent they are from political pressure.

Regulatory quality

Measures the government's ability to make and carry out policies that let the private sector develop.

Rule of law

Measures confidence in and respect for the rules of society, including contract enforcement, property rights, the police and the courts.

Control of corruption

Measures how far public power is used for private gain, including petty and grand corruption and "capture" of the state by elites.

Official bodies that hold power in Jordan

Government

• Prime Ministry
  Publishes cabinet decisions, government statements and official news.

Parliament

• House of Representatives
  Publishes session minutes, bills and the list of elected deputies.
• Senate
  Publishes Senate sessions, legislation and the list of appointed senators.

Elections

• Independent Election Commission
  Publishes voter lists, candidate information and official results of parliamentary and local elections.

Courts

• Judicial Council
  Publishes information on Jordanian courts, including the Court of Cassation, and judicial statistics.
• Constitutional Court
  Publishes rulings on the constitutionality of laws and interpretations of the constitution.

Public audit

• Audit Bureau
  Publishes annual audit reports on public bodies and state finances.

Access to information

• Information Council (National Library Department)
  Oversees the right to access information law and decides complaints from people refused information.

Public contracts

• Government Procurement Department
  Publishes central government tenders, award decisions and procurement regulations.
• Jordan Online E-Procurement System (JONEPS)
  Electronic platform for publishing government tenders and receiving bids.

Laws and the official gazette

• Legislation and Opinion Bureau
  Publishes Jordan's legislation database, draft laws and regulations.

Government below the national level

• Governorates (12): Governor appointed by the government (Ministry of Interior); governorate council at least 60% directly elected, with mayors and appointed members making up the rest
• Districts (liwa) and sub-districts (qada): District governors appointed
• Municipalities (about 100) and Greater Amman Municipality: Mayors and councils directly elected for four years (in normal times); Amman's mayor and a third of its council are appointed

How local power works in Jordan

Places in Jordan

• All 12 governorates
• The 10 largest cities
• Official statistics for Jordan

Sources

• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Voice and accountability (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 70f2804fd1e2…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Political stability and absence of violence (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1317de0c85e1…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Government effectiveness (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a775e808dc65…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Regulatory quality (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 83b57e36ff8c…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Rule of law (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0bccc3c054e8…)
• World Bank: Worldwide Governance Indicators: Control of corruption (governance score 0-100), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 3b15a5340cdd…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Seats held by women in national parliament (SG.GEN.PARL.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 1ae1dc13981a…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Women in ministerial positions (SG.GEN.MNST.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a4e448a5b8bd…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Central government spending (GC.XPN.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 808094019f50…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Tax revenue (GC.TAX.TOTL.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08c94b750f31…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Military spending (MS.MIL.XPND.GD.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 a7f6913a783b…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Armed forces personnel (MS.MIL.TOTL.P1), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 fa4663c743ba…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Statistical Performance Indicator (overall score) (IQ.SPI.OVRL), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 08ac7cde9129…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: Births registered (SP.REG.BRTH.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 f8d443034ba7…)
• World Bank: World Development Indicators: People using the internet (IT.NET.USER.ZS), read 23 October 2026 · saved copy (SHA-256 0d78dc658329…)

Each saved copy is the file exactly as downloaded, kept so the figures can be checked even if the source changes. Report an error.