* βeta
Ireland
Background :
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 1949, 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 gradually being implemented despite some difficulties. In 2006, the Irish and British governments developed and began 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 Center :
53 00 N, 8 00 W (Latitude, Longtitude)
Geographic Coordinates Rectangle :
| West | -10.48 |
| North | 55.39 |
| East | -6.00 |
| South | 51.45 |
Map references :
Europe
Area :
| total | 70 273 | square km |
| land | 68 883 | square km |
| water | 1 390 | square km |
Land boundaries :
| total | 360 | km |
| UK | 360 | km |
Coastline :
1448.00 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
Elevation extremes :
| lowest point | 0 | metres |
| highest point | 1 041 | metres |
Natural resources :
| barite | copper |
| dolomite | gypsum |
| lead | limestone |
| natural gas | peat |
| silver | zinc |
Land use :
| arable land | 16.82 | % |
| permanent crops | 0.03 | % |
| other | 83.15 | % |
Total renewable water resources :
46 cubic km
current issues :
water pollution, especially of lakes, from agricultural runoff
international agreements :
| Air Pollution | Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides |
| Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants | Air Pollution-Sulfur 94 |
| Biodiversity | Climate Change |
| Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol | Desertification |
| Endangered Species | Environmental Modification |
| Hazardous Wastes | Law of the Sea |
| Marine Dumping | Marine Life Conservation |
| Ozone Layer Protection | Ship Pollution |
| Tropical Timber 83 | Tropical Timber 94 |
| Wetlands | Whaling |
Population :
4 203 200
Indicators :
| Growth rate | 1.12 | % |
| Birth rate | 14.23 | births/1,000 population |
| Total fertility rate | 1.85 | children born/woman |
| Death rate | 7.75 | deaths/1,000 population |
| Net migration rate | 4.71 | migrant(s)/1,000 population |
Age structure :
| 0-14 years | 20.90 | % |
| 15-64 years | 67.10 | % |
| 65 years and over | 12.00 | % |
Median age :
| total | 35.00 | years |
| male | 34.20 | years |
| female | 35.70 | years |
Sex ratio :
| at birth | 1.07 | male(s)/female |
| under 15 years | 1.07 | male(s)/female |
| 15-64 years | 1.00 | male(s)/female |
| 65 years and over | 0.81 | male(s)/female |
| total population | 0.99 | male(s)/female |
Health :
| Infant mortality rate | 5.05 | deaths/1,000 live births |
| Life expectancy at birth - total population | 78.24 | years |
| Life expectancy at birth - male | 75.60 | years |
| Life expectancy at birth - female | 81.06 | years |
| HIV-AIDS adult prevalence rate | 0.20 | % |
| HIV-AIDS people living with HIV-AIDS | 5 500 | |
| HIV-AIDS deaths | 100 |
Religions :
| Roman Catholic | 87.40 | % |
| other Christian | 1.90 | % |
| other | 2.10 | % |
| unspecified | 1.50 | % |
| none | 4.20 | % |
Languages :
| English is the language generally used | |
| Irish spoken mainly in areas along the western coast |
Literacy :
| total population | 99.00 | % |
| male | 99.00 | % |
| female | 99.00 | % |
Country name :
| conventional short form | Ireland |
| local short form | Eire |
Country Codes :
| ISO 3166 | IE |
| ISO Numeric | 372 |
| ISO3 | IRL |
| FIPS | EI |
| ccTLD | ie |
| English | Ireland |
Administrative divisions :
29 counties and 5 cities*; Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Cork, Cork*, Donegal, Dublin*, Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown, Fingal, Galway, Galway*, Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Limerick, Limerick*, Longford, Louth, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, North Tipperary, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, South Dublin, South Tipperary, Waterford, Waterford*, Westmeath, Wexford, Wicklow
Capital :
| name | Dublin |
| geographic coordinates | 53 19 N, 6 14 W |
| time difference | 0.00 |
| daylight saving time | 1 |
International organization participation :
| ADB (nonregional member) | Australia Group |
| BIS | CE |
| EAPC | EBRD |
| EIB | EMU |
| ESA | EU |
| FAO | FATF |
| IAEA | IBRD |
| ICAO | ICC |
| ICCt | ICRM |
| IDA | IEA |
| IFAD | IFC |
| IFRCS | IHO |
| ILO | IMF |
| IMO | IOC |
| IOM | IPU |
| ISO | ITSO |
| ITU | ITUC |
| Interpol | MIGA |
| MINURCAT | MINURSO |
| MONUC | NEA |
| NSG | OAS (observer) |
| OECD | OPCW |
| OSCE | PCA |
| PFP | Paris Club |
| UN | UNCTAD |
| UNESCO | UNHCR |
| UNIDO | UNIFIL |
| UNMIL | UNOCI |
| UNTSO | UPU |
| WCO | WEU (observer) |
| WFTU | WHO |
| WIPO | WMO |
| WTO | ZC |
Independence :
1921-12-06
National holiday :
Saint Patricks Day
2010-03-17
Executive branch :
| President Mary MCALEESE | Prime Minister Brian COWEN |
Legislative branch :
| Fianna Fail | 41.60 | % |
| Fine Gael | 27.30 | % |
| Labor Party | 10.10 | % |
| Sinn Fein | 6.90 | % |
| Green Party | 4.70 | % |
| Progressive Democrats | 2.70 | % |
| other | 6.70 | % |
GDP - Gross Domestic product :
| PPP - Purchasing Power Parity | 177 000 000 000 | $ |
| Official Exchange Rate | 226 800 000 000 | |
| RGR - Real Growth rate | -7.50 | % |
| PPP - per capita | 42 200 | $ |
GDP Composition by sector :
| agriculture | 5.00 | % |
| industry | 46.00 | % |
| services | 49.00 | % |
Labor force - by occupation :
| agriculture | 6.00 | % |
| industry | 27.00 | % |
| services | 67.00 | % |
Other Indicators :
| Labor force | 2 200 000 | people |
| Unemployment rate | 12.00 | % |
| Population below poverty line | 4.20 | % |
| Distribution of family income - Gini index | 30.70 | |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -1.70 | % |
| Investment (gross fixed) | 15.40 | % of GDP |
| Current account balance | - 5 308 000 000 | $ |
| Reserves of foreign exchange and gold | 1 022 999 999 | $ |
| Debt external | 2 287 000 000 000 | $ |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad | 157 100 000 000 | $ |
| Stock of direct foreign investment - at home | 174 200 000 000 | $ |
| Market value of publicly traded shares | 144 000 000 000 | $ |
| Military expenditures | 0.90 | % of GDP |
| Public debt | 63.70 | % of GDP |
Household income or consumption by percentage share :
| lowest 10% | 2.90 | % |
| highest 10% | 27.20 | % |
Budget :
| revenues | 74 820 000 000 | $ |
| expenditures | 104 600 000 000 | $ |
Agriculture - products :
| barley | beef |
| dairy | potatoes |
| sugar beets | turnips |
| wheat |
Industries :
| aluminum | barite |
| brewing | chemicals |
| clothing | crystal |
| food products | glass |
| gypsum mining processing | lead |
| machinery | pharmaceuticals |
| rail transportation equipment | silver |
| software | steel |
| textiles | tourism |
| zinc |
Energy :
| Electricity Production | 26 060 000 000 | kWh |
| Electricity Consumption | 25 120 000 000 | kWh |
| Electricity Exports | 303 000 000 | kWh |
| Electricity Imports | 753 000 000 | kWh |
| Oil Consumption | 188 000 | bbl/day |
| Oil Exports | 22 710 | bbl/day |
| Oil Imports | 190 800 | bbl/day |
| Natural gas Production | 438 000 000 | cubic metres |
| Natural gas Consumption | 5 217 000 000 | cubic metres |
| Natural gas Imports | 4 798 000 000 | cubic metres |
| Electricity Exports | 9 911 000 000 | cubic metres |
Value :
107 300 000 000 $
Partners :
| United States (us) | 18.90 | % |
| United Kingdom (gb) | 18.40 | % |
| Belgium (be) | 14.60 | % |
| Germany (de) | 6.90 | % |
| France (fr) | 5.80 | % |
| Spain (es) | 4.20 | % |
Commodities :
| animal products | chemicals |
| computers | live animals |
| machinery and equipment | pharmaceuticals |
Value :
64 900 000 000 $
Partners :
| United Kingdom (gb) | 37.60 | % |
| United States (us) | 11.60 | % |
| Germany (de) | 8.60 | % |
| Netherlands (nl) | 5.60 | % |
Commodities :
| chemicals | clothing |
| data processing equipment | other machinery and equipment |
| petroleum and petroleum products | textiles |
Currency-code :
EUR
Currency-name :
euro
Communications :
| Telephons Main lines in use | 2 202 000 | |
| Telephons Mobile, Cellular | 5 048 000 | |
| FM Radio broadcast stations | 106 | |
| Television broadcast stations | 4 | |
| Internet Country code (ccTLD) | ie | |
| Internet Hosts | 1 303 000 | |
| Internet Users | 2 830 000 |
Transportation :
| Airports with paved runways | 17 | |
| Pipelines - gas | 1 550 | km |
| Roadways - total | 96 602 | km |
| Roadways - expressways | 200 | km |
| Roadways - paved | 96 602 | km |
| Railways | 3 237 | km |
| Waterways | 956 | km |
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