Ireland




                                 Geography


Location:
     Western Europe, in the North Atlantic Ocean, across the Irish Sea from
     Great Britain
Map references:
     Europe, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
     70,280 sq km
land area:
     68,890 sq km
comparative area:
     slightly larger than West Virginia
Land boundaries:
     total 360 km, UK 360 km
Coastline:
     1,448 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf:
     not specified
exclusive fishing zone:
     200 nm
territorial sea:
     12 nm
International disputes:
     Northern Ireland question with the UK; Rockall continental shelf
     dispute involving Denmark, Iceland, and the UK (Ireland and the UK
     have signed a boundary agreement in the Rockall area)
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, petroleum, barite, copper, gypsum, limestone,
     dolomite, peat, silver
Land use:
arable land:
     14%
permanent crops:
     0%
meadows and pastures:
     71%
forest and woodland:
     5%
other:
     10%
Irrigated land:
     NA sq km
Environment:
current issues:
     water pollution, especially of lakes, from agricultural runoff




natural hazards:
     NA
international agreements:
     party to - Air Pollution, Environmental Modification, Hazardous
     Wastes, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection,
     Tropical Timber, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Air
     Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered
     Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation
Note:
     strategic location on major air and sea routes between North American
     and northern Europe; over 40% of the population resides within 60
     miles of Dublin


                                  People


Population:
     3,539,296 (July 1994 est.)
Population growth rate:
     0.3% (1994 est.)
Birth rate:
     14.21 births/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Death rate:
     8.59 deaths/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Net migration rate:
     -2.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1994 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
     7.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1994 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
     75.68 years
male:
     72.85 years
female:
     78.68 years (1994 est.)
Total fertility rate:
     1.99 children born/woman (1994 est.)
Nationality:
noun:
     Irishman(men), Irishwoman(men), Irish (collective plural)
adjective:
     Irish
Ethnic divisions:
     Celtic, English
Religions:
     Roman Catholic 93%, Anglican 3%, none 1%, unknown 2%, other 1% (1981)
Languages:
     Irish (Gaelic), spoken mainly in areas located along the western
     seaboard, English is the language generally used
Literacy:
     age 15 and over can read and write (1981 est.)
total population:
     98%
male:
     NA%




female:
     NA%
Labor force:
     1.37 million
by occupation:
     services 57.0%, manufacturing and construction 28%, agriculture,
     forestry, and fishing 13.5%, energy and mining 1.5% (1992)


                                Government


Names:
conventional long form:
     none
conventional short form:
Digraph:
     EI
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)
National holiday:
     Saint Patrick's Day, 17 March
Constitution:
     29 December 1937; adopted 1 July 1937 by plebecite
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 Bourke ROBINSON (since 9 November 1990); election last
     held 9 November 1990 (next to be held November 1997); results - Mary
     Bourke ROBINSON 52.8%, Brian LENIHAN 47.2%
head of government:
     Prime Minister Albert REYNOLDS (since 11 February 1992)
cabinet:
     Cabinet; appointed by president with previous nomination of the prime
     minister and approval of the House of Representatives
Legislative branch:
     bicameral Parliament (Oireachtas)
Senate (Seanad Eireann):
     elections last held on NA February 1992 (next to be held February
     1997); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (60 total, 49
     elected) Fianna Fail 26, Fine Gael 16, Labor 9, Progressive Democrats
     2, Democratic Left 1, independents 6




House of Representatives (Dail Eireann):
     elections last held on 25 November 1992 (next to be held by June
     1995); results - Fianna Fail 39.1%, Fine Gael 24.5%, Labor Party
     19.3%, Progressive Democrats 4.7%, Democratic Left 2.8%, Sinn Fein
     1.6%, Workers' Party 0.7%, independents 5.9%; seats - (166 total)
     Fianna Fail 68, Fine Gael 45, Labor Party 33, Progressive Democrats
     10, Democratic Left 4, Greens 1, independents 5
Judicial branch:
     Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
     Democratic Left, Proinsias DE ROSSA; Fianna Fail, Albert REYNOLDS;
     Labor Party, Richard SPRING; Fine Gael, John BRUTON; Communist Party
     of Ireland, Michael O'RIORDAN; Sinn Fein, Gerry ADAMS; Progressive
     Democrats, Desmond O'MALLEY
note:
     Prime Minister REYNOLDS heads a coalition consisting of the Fianna
     Fail and the Labor Party
Member of:
     Australian Group, BIS, CCC, CE, COCOM (cooperating), CSCE, EBRD, EC,
     ECE, EIB, ESA, FAO, GATT, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC,
     ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC, ISO, ITU, LORCS, MINURSO,
     MTCR, NEA, NSG, OECD, ONUSAL, UN, UNAVEM II, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP,
     UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNOSOM, UNPROFRO, UNTAC, UNTSO, UPU, WEU
     (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission:
     Ambassador Dermot A. GALLAGHER
chancery:
     2234 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone:
     (202) 462-3939
consulate(s) general:
     Boston, Chicago, New York, and San Francisco
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission:
     Ambassador Jean Kennedy SMITH
embassy:
     42 Elgin Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin
mailing address:
     use embassy street address
telephone:
     [353] (1) 6687122
FAX:
     [353] (1) 6689946
Flag:
     three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and orange;
     similar to the flag of the 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:
     The economy is small and trade dependent. Agriculture, once the most
     important sector, is now dwarfed by industry, which accounts for 37%
     of GDP, about 80% of exports, and employs 28% of the labor force.
     Since 1987, real GDP growth, led by exports, has averaged 4% annually.
     Over the same period, inflation has fallen sharply and chronic trade
     deficits have been transformed into annual surpluses. Unemployment
     remains a serious problem, however, and job creation is the main focus
     of government policy. To ease unemployment, Dublin aggressively courts
     foreign investors and recently created a new industrial development
     agency to aid small indigenous firms. Government assistance is
     constrained by Dublin's continuing deficit reduction measures.
National product:
     GDP - purchasing power equivalent - $46.3 billion (1993)
National product real growth rate:
     2.7% (1993)
National product per capita:
     $13,100 (1993)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
     2.7% (1994 est.)
Unemployment rate:
     16% (1994 est.)
Budget:
revenues:
     $16 billion
expenditures:
     $16.6 billion, including capital expenditures of $1.6 billion (1992
     est.)
Exports:
     $28.3 billion (f.o.b., 1992)
commodities:
     chemicals, data processing equipment, industrial machinery, live
     animals, animal products
partners:
     EC 75% (UK 32%, Germany 13%, France 10%), US 9%
Imports:
     $23.3 billion (c.i.f., 1992)
commodities:
     food, animal feed, data processing equipment, petroleum and petroleum
     products, machinery, textiles, clothing
partners:
     EC 66% (UK 41%, Germany 8%, Netherlands 4%), US 15%
External debt:
     $17.6 billion (1992)
Industrial production:
     growth rate 11.5% (1992); accounts for 37% of GDP
Electricity:
capacity:
     5,000,000 kW
production:
     14.5 billion kWh
consumption per capita:
     4,120 kWh (1992)




Industries:
     food products, brewing, textiles, clothing, chemicals,
     pharmaceuticals, machinery, transportation equipment, glass and
     crystal
Agriculture:
     accounts for 8% of GDP and 13% of the labor force; principal crops -
     turnips, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, wheat; livestock - meat and
     dairy products; 85% self-sufficient in food; food shortages include
     bread grain, fruits, vegetables
Illicit drugs:
     transshipment point for hashish from North Africa to the UK and
     Netherlands
Economic aid:
donor:
     ODA commitments (1980-89), $90 million
Currency:
     1 Irish pound (#Ir) = 100 pence
Exchange rates:
     Irish pounds (#Ir) per US$1 - 0.6978 (January 1994), 0.6816 (1993),
     0.5864 (1992), 0.6190 (1991), 0.6030 (1990), 0.7472 (1989)
Fiscal year:
     calendar year


                              Communications


Railroads:
     Irish National Railways (CIE) operates 1,947 km 1.602-meter gauge,
     government owned; 485 km double track; 37 km electrified
Highways:
total:
     92,294 km
paved:
     87,422 km
unpaved:
     gravel, crushed stone 4,872 km
Inland waterways:
     limited for commercial traffic
Pipelines:
     natural gas 225 km
Ports:
     Cork, Dublin, Waterford
Merchant marine:
     53 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 139,278 GRT/173,325 DWT, bulk 4,
     cargo 32, chemical tanker 2, container 4, oil tanker 3, refrigerated
     cargo 2, short-sea passenger 3, specialized tanker 3
Airports:
total:
     44
usable:
     42
with permanent-surface runways:
     14
with runways over 3,659 m:
     0




with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
     2
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
     7
Telecommunications:
     modern system using cable and digital microwave circuits; 900,000
     telephones; broadcast stations - 9 AM, 45 FM, 86 TV; 2 coaxial
     submarine cables; 1 Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT earth station


                              Defense Forces


Branches:
     Army (including Naval Service and Air Corps), National Police (Garda
     Siochana)
Manpower availability:
     males age 15-49 914,052; fit for military service 739,288; reach
     military age (17) annually 33,809 (1994 est.)
Defense expenditures:
     exchange rate conversion - $500 million, 1.3% of GDP (1993)