ABSTRACT
This chapter analyzes the processes involved in three aspects of Jordan's situation: its location at a crossroads, urbanization, and water. Almost all of Jordan's industry commerce, financial institutions, communications and tourism became concentrated in Jordan (Amman). All this naturally necessitated the allocation of resources for sewerage, roads, housing construction, creating sources of employment and one more important matter: the supply of water for a city that is located in a semi-arid region 700 meters above sea level. Jordan's emergence as an international crossroads had immediate implications for its economy. The 1970s and 1980s created a special condition in the Middle East, by turning the Kingdom of Jordan into an especially important regional and international crossroads. This period has passed, however, and the kingdom once again has returned to its historic modest place in the region, sandwiched between Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Israel, pressed by Palestinization and Islam, and struggling with difficult economic problems.
