Jordan

Jordan’s public finances have deteriorated since the mid-2000s, resulting in a significant reduction in public investment. In response to several negative external shocks, notably the Iraq and Syria crises and the 2008 global financial crisis, the government has reduced public investment and stepped up the use of public-private partnerships (PPPs). Capital expenditure as a share of total expenditure for the general government decreased from around 7 percent of GDP in the early 2000s to around 4 percent of GDP in the years following the 2008 global financial crisis. Consequently, Jordan’s public capital stock stood at 77 percent of GDP in 2015, compared to 140 percent of GDP in 1990, and the capital stock per capita in 2015 was lower than those of peer countries with similar income levels.