Celtic tribes arrived on the island between 600-150 B.C. Invasions by Norsemen that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian BORU defeated the Danes in 1014. English invasions began in the 12th century and set off more than seven centuries of Anglo-Irish struggle marked by fierce rebellions and harsh repressions. A failed 1916 Easter Monday Rebellion touched off several years of guerrilla warfare that in 1921 resulted in independence from the UK for 26 southern counties; six northern (Ulster) counties remained part of the UK. 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 is being implemented with some difficulties. In 2006, the Irish and British governments developed and began working to implement the St. Andrews Agreement, building on the Good Friday Agreement approved in 1998.
Location
Western Europe, occupying five-sixths of the island of Ireland in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Great Britain
Geographic coordinates
53 00 N, 8 00 W
Map references
Europe
Area
total
70,280 sq km
land
68,890 sq km
water
1,390 sq km
Area - comparative
slightly larger than West Virginia
Land boundaries
total
360 km
border countries
UK 360 km
Coastline
1,448 km
Maritime claims
territorial sea
12 nm
exclusive fishing zone
200 nm
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
note: Cavan, Donegal, and Monaghan are part of Ulster Province
Independence
6 December 1921 (from UK by treaty)
National holiday
Saint Patrick's Day, 17 March
Constitution
adopted 1 July 1937 by plebiscite; effective 29 December 1937
Legal system
based on English common law, substantially modified by indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch
chief of state
President Mary MCALEESE (since 11 November 1997)
head of government
Prime Minister Bertie AHERN (since 26 June 1997)
cabinet
Cabinet appointed by the president with previous nomination by the prime minister and approval of the House of Representatives
elections
president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 31 October 1997 (next scheduled for October 2011); note - Mary MCALEESE appointed to a second term when no other candidate qualified for the 2004 presidential election; prime minister (taoiseach) nominated by the House of Representatives and appointed by the president
election results
Mary MCALEESE elected president; percent of vote - Mary MCALEESE 44.8%, Mary BANOTTI 29.6%
note
government coalition - Fianna Fail, the Green Party and the Progressive Democrats
Legislative branch
bicameral Parliament or Oireachtas consists of the Senate or Seanad Eireann (60 seats; 49 members elected by the universities and from candidates put forward by five vocational panels, 11 are nominated by the prime minister; to serve five-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Dail Eireann (166 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 16 and 17 July 2002 (next to be held by July 2007); House of Representatives - last held 24 May 2007 (next to be held by May 2012)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Fianna Fail 30, Fine Gael 15, Labor Party 5, Progressive Democrats 4, independents and other 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - Fianna Fail 41.6%, Fine Gael 27.3%, Labor Party 10.1%, Sinn Fein 6.9%, Green Party 4.7%, Progressive Democrats 2.7%, other 6.7%; seats by party - Fianna Fail 78, Fine Gael 51, Labor Party 20, Sinn Fein 4, Green Party 6, Progressive Democrats 2, other 5
Judicial branch
Supreme Court (judges appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister and cabinet)
Political parties and leaders
Fianna Fail [Bertie AHERN]; Fine Gael [Enda KENNY]; Green Party [Trevor SARGENT, acting leader]; Labor Party [Pat RABBITTE]; Progressive Democrats [Michael McDOWELL]; Sinn Fein [Gerry ADAMS]; Socialist Party [Joe HIGGINS]; The Workers' Party [Sean GARLAND]
2234 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone
[1] (202) 462-3939
FAX
[1] (202) 232-5993
consulate(s) general
Boston, Chicago, New York, San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US
chief of mission
Ambassador Thomas C. FOLEY
embassy
42 Elgin Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4
mailing address
use embassy street address
telephone
[353] (1) 668-8777
FAX
[353] (1) 668-9946
Flag description
three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and orange; similar to the flag of Cote d'Ivoire, which is shorter and has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green; also similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter and has colors of green (hoist side), white, and red
Economy - overview
Ireland is a small, modern, trade-dependent economy with growth averaging 6% in 1995-2006. Agriculture, once the most important sector, is now dwarfed by industry and services. Industry accounts for 46% of GDP, about 80% of exports, and 29% of the labor force. Although exports remain the primary engine for Ireland's growth, the economy has also benefited from a rise in consumer spending, construction, and business investment. Per capita GDP is 40% above that of the four big European economies and the second highest in the EU behind Luxembourg. Over the past decade, the Irish Government has implemented a series of national economic programs designed to curb price and wage inflation, reduce government spending, increase labor force skills, and promote foreign investment. Ireland joined in circulating the euro on 1 January 2002 along with 11 other EU nations.
GDP (purchasing power parity)
$180.7 billion (2006 est.)
GDP (official exchange rate)
$204.4 billion (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate
6% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP)
$44,500 (2006 est.)
GDP - composition by sector
agriculture
5%
industry
46%
services
49% (2002 est.)
Labor force
2.12 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation
agriculture
8%
industry
29%
services
64% (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate
4.3% (2006 est.)
Population below poverty line
10% (1997 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share
lowest 10%
2%
highest 10%
27.3% (1997)
Distribution of family income - Gini index
35.9 (1996)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)
3.9% (2006 est.)
Investment (gross fixed)
28% of GDP (2006 est.)
Budget
revenues
$74.49 billion
expenditures
$73.05 billion; including capital expenditures of $5.5 billion (2006 est.)
steel, lead, zinc, silver, aluminum, barite, and gypsum mining processing; food products, brewing, textiles, clothing; chemicals, pharmaceuticals; machinery, rail transportation equipment, passenger and commercial vehicles, ship construction and refurbishment; glass and crystal; software, tourism
Industrial production growth rate
5% (2006 est.)
Electricity - production
23.26 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - production by source
fossil fuel
95.9%
hydro
2.3%
nuclear
0%
other
1.7% (2001)
Electricity - consumption
23.23 billion kWh (2004)
Electricity - exports
0 kWh (2004)
Electricity - imports
1.6 billion kWh (2004)
Oil - production
0 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - consumption
182,400 bbl/day (2004 est.)
Oil - exports
27,450 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports
178,600 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - proved reserves
0 bbl (1 January 2002)
Natural gas - production
855 million cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - consumption
4.295 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - exports
0 cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - imports
3.44 billion cu m (2004 est.)
Natural gas - proved reserves
19.82 billion cu m (1 January 2005 est.)
Current account balance
-$9.45 billion (2006 est.)
Exports
$119.8 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Exports - commodities
machinery and equipment, computers, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; live animals, animal products
Exports - partners
US 18.8%, UK 17.4%, Belgium 15.9%, Germany 7.5%, France 5.6%, Italy 4.1% (2006)
Imports
$87.36 billion f.o.b. (2006 est.)
Imports - commodities
data processing equipment, other machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum and petroleum products, textiles, clothing
Imports - partners
UK 37.3%, US 11.6%, Germany 9.5%, Netherlands 4.6% (2006)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold
$842.5 million (August 2006 est.)
Debt - external
$1.392 trillion (30 June 2006)
Economic aid - donor
ODA, $607 million (2004)
Currency (code)
euro (EUR)
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
Exchange rates
euros per US dollar - 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002)
Fiscal year
calendar year
Telephones - main lines in use
2.033 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular
4.21 million (2005)
Telephone system
general assessment
modern digital system using cable and microwave radio relay
domestic
microwave radio relay
international
country code - 353; 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 repeaters) (2001)
Televisions
1.82 million (2001)
Internet country code
.ie
Internet hosts
238,191 (2006)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)
22 (2000)
Internet users
2.06 million (2005)
Airports
36 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways
total
15
over 3,047 m
1
2,438 to 3,047 m
1
1,524 to 2,437 m
4
914 to 1,523 m
3
under 914 m
6 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways
total
21
914 to 1,523 m
4
under 914 m
17 (2006)
Pipelines
gas 1,728 km (2006)
Railways
total
3,312 km
broad gauge
1,947 km 1.600-m gauge (46 km electrified)
narrow gauge
1,365 km 0.914-m gauge (operated by the Irish Peat Board to transport peat to power stations and briquetting plants) (2005)
Roadways
total
96,602 km
paved
96,602 km (includes 200 km of expressways) (2003)
Waterways
956 km (pleasure craft only) (2007)
Merchant marine
total
23 ships (1000 GRT or over) 103,589 GRT/145,044 DWT
by type
cargo 19, chemical tanker 2, container 1, roll on/roll off 1
foreign-owned
4 (Germany 2, US 2)
registered in other countries
21 (Bahamas 2, Bermuda 1, Cyprus 3, Gibraltar 1, Netherlands 10, Panama 2, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, UK 1) (2006)
Ports and terminals
Cork, Dublin, New Ross, Shannon Foynes, Waterford
Military branches
Irish Defense Forces (Oglaigh na h-Eireann): Army (includes Naval Service and Air Corps) (2006)
Military service age and obligation
17 years of age for voluntary military service; enlistees under the age of 17 can be recruited for specialist positions (2001)
Manpower available for military service
males age 17-49
977,092
females age 17-49
978,465 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service
males age 17-49
814,768
females age 17-49
813,981 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually
males age 18-49
29,327
females age 17-49
28,139 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP
0.9% (2005 est.)
Disputes - international
Ireland, Iceland, and the UK dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm
Illicit drugs
transshipment point for and consumer of hashish from North Africa to the UK and Netherlands and of European-produced synthetic drugs; increasing consumption of South American cocaine; minor transshipment point for heroin and cocaine destined for Western Europe; despite recent legislation, narcotics-related money laundering - using bureaux de change, trusts, and shell companies involving the offshore financial community - remains a concern
