IPF	Abdel Mahdi Alsoudib

The Impact of US Aid Policy on Democracy and Political Reform in Jordan and other Arab Countries
	Full citation		Brief annotation
	“Building Sustainable Livelihoods”, Jordan Human Development Report 2004, UNDP.		Many reports talk about poverty and the poor, but few actually provide the space for the poor themselves to take centre stage and to talk about their lives. Jordan’s second National Human Development Report redresses this imbalance. It places the poor at the centre of analysis and attempts to capture the diverse and dynamic characteristics of poverty through the eyes of the poor themselves. A major theme of the report is that the considerable human development gains that have been achieved at the macro-level in Jordan have yet to trickle down to many sub-groups among the poor. The report provides detailed recommendations to accelerate this process and to enhance positive outcomes for the poor.
	Alfred B. Prados, “Jordan: U.S. Relations and Bilateral Issues”, CRS Issue Brief for Congress, 2003.		Several issues in U.S.-Jordanian relations are likely to figure in decisions by Congress and the Administration on future aid to and cooperation with Jordan. These include the stability of the Jordanian regime, democratic reform underway in Jordan, the role of Jordan in the Arab-Israeli peace process, Jordan’s concerns over the U.S.-led campaign against Iraq in 2003, and its relations with other regional states. In each of the five fiscal years 1998 through 2002, Jordan received approximately $225 million in annual U.S. assistance. The Administration proposed doubling U.S. assistance to Jordan in FY2003, in view of Jordanian support to the anti-terrorism campaign. Congressional several alternative scenarios could develop in Jordan: a continuation of the current course toward democracy under the present regime; a return to a more autocratic political system; or fundamental changes in the character or configuration of the Jordanian state. Steady democratic growth under the present regime would probably offer the best prospects of supporting U.S. interests.

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February 2006