A failed 1916 Easter Monday
Rebellion touched off several years of guerrilla warfare that in 1921 resulted
in independence from the UK for the 26 southern counties; the six northern
counties (Ulster) remained part of Great Britain. In 1948 Ireland withdrew from
the British Commonwealth; it joined the European Community in 1973. Irish
governments have sought the peaceful unification of Ireland and have cooperated
with Britain against terrorist groups. A peace settlement for Northern Ireland,
known as the Good Friday Agreement and approved in 1998, is currently being
implemented.
Location: Western
Europe, occupying five-sixths of the island of Ireland in the North Atlantic
Ocean, west of Great Britain
Area:
Area - comparative: slightly larger than West Virginia |
Land boundaries:
§
total: 360 km
§
border countries: UK
360 km
Climate: temperate
maritime; modified by North Atlantic Current; mild winters, cool summers;
consistently humid; overcast about half the time
Terrain: mostly level
to rolling interior plain surrounded by rugged hills and low mountains; sea
cliffs on west coast
Natural resources: zinc, lead,
natural gas, barite, copper, gypsum, limestone, dolomite, peat, silver
Land use:
§
arable land: 20%
§
permanent crops: 0%
§
other: 80% (1998
est.)
Geography - note: strategic location on major air and sea
routes between North America and northern Europe; over 40% of the population
resides within 97 km of Dublin.
Population: 3,883,159
(July 2002 est.)
Age structure:
§
0-14 years: 21.3% (male
425,366; female 403,268)
§
15-64 years: 67.3%
(male 1,307,469; female 1,305,038)
§
65 years and over:
11.4% (male 191,927; female 250,091) (2002 est.)
Population growth rate:
1.07% (2002 est.)
| Birth rate: 14.62 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) Death rate: 8.01 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) |
Net migration
rate:
4.12 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2002 est.)
Sex ratio:
§
at birth: 1.07
male(s)/female
§
under 15 years: 1.05
male(s)/female
§
15-64 years: 1
male(s)/female
§
65 years and over: 0.77
male(s)/female
§
total population: 0.98
male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Ethnic groups:
Celtic, English
Religions:
Roman Catholic 91.6%, Church
of Ireland 2.5%, other 5.9% (1998)
Languages: English is
the language generally used, Irish (Gaelic) spoken mainly in areas located
along the western seaboard
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over
can read and write
total population: 98% (1981
est.)
|
Government type: Republic Capital: Dublin |  |
Administrative
divisions: 26 counties; Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Cork,
Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Limerick,
Longford, Louth, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, Tipperary,
Waterford, Westmeath, Wexford, Wicklow
Independence: 6 December
1921 (from UK by treaty)
International
organization participation: Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, EAPC, EBRD,
ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU,
MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PFP,
UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO,
UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNTAET, UNTSO, UPU, WEU
(observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Ireland is a small, modern,
trade-dependent economy with growth averaging a robust 9% in 1995-2001.
Agriculture, once the most important sector, is now dwarfed by industry, which
accounts for 38% of GDP, about 80% of exports, and employs 28% of the labor
force. Although exports remain the primary engine for Ireland's robust growth,
the economy is also benefiting from a rise in consumer spending and recovery in
both construction and business investment. Over the past decade, the Irish
government has implemented a series of national economic programs designed to
curb inflation, reduce government spending, increase labor force skills, and
promote foreign investment. Ireland joined in launching the euro currency
system in January 1999 along with 10 other EU nations. The economy felt the
impact of the global economic slowdown in 2001, particularly in the high-tech
export sector; the growth rate was cut by nearly half. Growth in 2002 is
expected to fall in the 3%-5% range.
GDP - purchasing power
parity: $104.7 billion (2001
est.)
GDP - real growth
rate: 5.6% (2001 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing
power parity - $27,300 (2001 est.)
GDP - composition by
sector:
§
agriculture: 4%
§
industry: 38%
§
services: 58% (2000)
Population below
poverty line: 10% (1997 est.)
Household income or
consumption by percentage share:
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.9% (2001) Labor force: 1.8 million (2001) Labor force - by occupation: services 64%, industry 28%, agriculture 8% |
|
Unemployment rate: 4.3%
(2001)
Budget:
§
revenues: $34 billion
§
expenditures: $27
billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001)
Industries: food
products, brewing, textiles, clothing; chemicals, pharmaceuticals, machinery,
transportation equipment, glass and crystal; software
Agriculture -
products: turnips, barley, potatoes, sugar beets,
wheat; beef, dairy products
Exports: $75.9
billion (f.o.b., 2001)
Exports - commodities: machinery
and equipment, computers, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; live animals, animal
products
Exports - partners: EU 63% (UK
20%, Germany 11%, France 8%, Netherlands 6%, Belgium 5%), US 20% (2000)
Imports: $49.5
billion (f.o.b., 2001)
Imports - commodities: data
processing equipment, other machinery and equipment, chemicals; petroleum and
petroleum products, textiles, clothing
Imports - partners: EU 61% (UK
33%, Germany 6%, France 5%, Netherlands 4%), US 16%, Japan 4% (2000)
Debt - external: $11 billion
(1998)
Economic aid - donor: ODA, $283
million (2001)
Currency: euro (EUR); Irish pound (IEP)
note: on 1 January 1999, the
European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by
financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became
the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries
Currency code: EUR;
IEP
Exchange rates: euros per US
dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999);
Irish pounds per US dollar - 0.7014 (1998), 0.6588 (1997)
Fiscal year: calendar
year
Telephones - main
lines in use: 1.59 million
(2001)
Telephones - mobile
cellular: 2 million (2001)
Telephone system: general
assessment: modern digital system using cable and microwave radio relay
domestic: microwave radio relay
international: satellite
earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)
Radio broadcast
stations: AM 9, FM 106, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 2.55
million (1997)
Television broadcast
stations: 4 (many low-power repeaters) (2001)
Televisions: 1.82 million
(2001)
Internet country code: .ie
Internet Service
Providers (ISPs): 22 (2000)
Internet users: 1.25 million
(2001)