Ireland

conventional long form: none
Capital: -
Type of Government: parliamentary democracy-
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
Age Structure: 0-14 years: 20.9% (male 434,225/female 406,730)
Agriculture: turnips, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, wheat; beef, dairy products
Airports: 36 (2004 est.)
With Paved Runways: total: 15-
With Unpaved Runways:
Area: -. -
Background:
Birth rate: 14.47 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Budget: revenues: $70.46 billion-
Coastline: -
Climate: -
Communications:
Constitution: adopted 1 July 1937 by plebiscite; effective 29 December 1937
Currency: euro (EUR)
Current account balance: $-5.19 billion (2005 est.)
Death rate: 7.85 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Debt - external: $1.049 trillion (30 June 2005)-
Dependency status: -
Dependent areas:
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador James C. KENNY
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Noel FAHEY-
Disputes - international:
Distribution of family income: 35.9 (1996)-
Economic aid - donor: -
Economic aid - recipient: -
Economy - overview:
Electricity - consumption:
Electricity - exports:
Electricity - imports:
Electricity - production:
Elevation extremes: -
Environment - current issues:
Environment - International Agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
Ethnic groups: Celtic, English
Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 0.79697 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)
Executive branch: chief of state: President Mary MCALEESE (since 11 November 1997)
Exports: $102 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Exports - partners: US 19.7%, UK 17.7%, Belgium 14.7%, Germany 7.7%, France 6%, Netherlands 4.6%, Italy 4.5% (2004)
Fiscal year: calendar year
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
GDP (official exchange rate): $194.2 billion (2005 est.)
GDP (purchasing power parity): $136.9 billion (2005 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 5%
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $34,100 (2005 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4.9% (2005 est.)-
Geographic coordinates: -
Geography - note: -
Government - note:
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate: 0.1% (2001 est.)
HIV/AIDS - deaths: less than 100 (2003 est.)
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS: 2,800 (2001 est.)-
Heliports:
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2%
Illicit drugs: transshipment point for and consumer of hashish from North Africa to the UK and Netherlands and of European-produced synthetic drugs; 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
Imports: $65.47 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)
Imports - partners: UK 35.7%, US 13.8%, Germany 9%, Netherlands 4.3%, France 4.2% (2004)
Independence: 6 December 1921 (from UK by treaty)
Industrial production growth rate: 3% (2005 est.)
Industries: 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
Infant mortality rate: total: 5.39 deaths/1,000 live births
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.7% (2005 est.)
International organization participation: Australia Group, BIS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIL, UNMOVIC, UNOCI, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Internet country code: .ie-
Internet hosts:
Internet users: 1.26 million (2003)-
Investment (gross fixed):
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (judges appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister and cabinet)
Labor force: 2.03 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation:
Land boundaries: total: 360 km
Land use: arable land: 15.2%
Languages: English (official) is the language generally used, Irish (official) (Gaelic or Gaeilge) spoken mainly in areas located along the western seaboard
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
Legislative branch:
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 77.56 years
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write-
Location: -
Major infectious diseases:
Manpower available for military service: males age 17-49: 977,092 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 17-49: 814,768 (2005 est.)-
Manpower reaching military service age annually: -
Map references:
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm
Median age: total: 33.7 years-
Merchant marine: -
Military - note:
Military branches: Army (includes Naval Service and Air Corps)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $700 million (FY00/01)-
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: -
Military service age and obligation:
National holiday: Saint Patrick's Day, 17 March
Nationality: noun: Irishman(men), Irishwoman(women), Irish (collective plural)-
Natural gas - consumption: -
Natural gas - exports: -
Natural gas - imports:
Natural gas - production: -
Natural gas - proved reserves: -
Natural hazards: -
Natural resources:
Net migration rate: 4.93 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Oil - consumption: 175,600 bbl/day (2003 est.)
Oil - exports: 27,450 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - imports: 178,600 bbl/day (2001)
Oil - production: 0 bbl/day (2003 est.)-
Oil - proved reserves: -
People - note:
Political parties and leaders: Fianna Fail [Bertie AHERN]; Fine Gael [Enda KENNY]; Green Party [Trevor SARGENT]; Labor Party [Pat RABITTE]; Progressive Democrats [Mary HARNEY]; Sinn Fein [Gerry ADAMS]; Socialist Party [Joe HIGGINS]; The Workers' Party [Sean GARLAND]
Political pressure groups and leaders: NA
Population: 4,015,676 (July 2005 est.)
Population below poverty line: 10% (1997 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.16% (2005 est.)-
Ports and terminals: -
Public debt:
Radio broadcast stations: AM 9, FM 106, shortwave 0 (1998)-
Railways: -
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
Religions: Roman Catholic 88.4%, Church of Ireland 3%, other Christian 1.6%, other 1.5%, unspecified 2%, none 3.5% (2002 census)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $2.908 billion (2004 est.)
Roadways: total: 95,736 km
Sex ratio:
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system: general assessment: modern digital system using cable and microwave radio relay
Telephones - main lines in use: 1.955 million (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 3.4 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations: 4 (many low-power repeaters) (2001)-
Terrain:
Total fertility rate: 1.87 children born/woman (2005 est.)-
Transportation - note:
Unemployment rate: 4.2% (2005 est.)-
Waterways: