Ireland is an island country located in the North Atlantic Ocean, with a population of around 4.9 million people. The main ethnic group is Irish, making up around 84% of the population. Other ethnic groups include British, Polish and Lithuanian. The majority of Irish people are Roman Catholic, with other religions such as Protestantism and Islam making up much of the remaining population. Additionally, there is also a small Hindu minority living in Ireland as well. The literacy rate in Ireland is close to 99%, and the average life expectancy is 81 years. Check hyperrestaurant to learn more about Ireland in 2009.
Social conditions
From the 1990s until the international financial crisis in 2008, Ireland experienced high economic growth. Visit AbbreviationFinder to see the definitions of IRL and acronym for Ireland. Subsequently, the economic downturn has meant that many Irish people have deteriorated economy and that the state has been forced to make cuts in the social security system. After a period of low unemployment, the country again experienced a high unemployment rate: 2008-12 more than doubled it. In 2014, unemployment was 11.3 percent, which is slightly lower than 2012.
Land area | 70,273 km² |
Total population | 5,176,569 |
Residents per km² | 73.7 |
Capital | Dublin |
Official language | Irish (Gaelic) (5%) and English (95%) |
Income per capita | $ 73,200 |
Currency | Euro |
ISO 3166 code | IE |
Internet TLD | .ie |
License plate | IRL |
Telephone code | +353 |
Time zone UTC | 0 |
Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 8 00 W. |
High unemployment during much of the 20th century led many young people to leave the country. This trend was broken during the years with good economic growth, but has returned after 2008. Unlike before, however, it is now the most highly educated who move abroad. One result of emigration is that almost half of those born in Ireland now live and live in another country. Check to see Ireland population.
Employees in Ireland are connected to a compulsory social security system from age 16 to retirement at 66. The insurance covers national pension, widow’s pension, unemployment insurance, health insurance, maternity pension, invalidity pension and early retirement pension. Since 1988, own companies have also been obliged to join this system.
The trade union movement is fragmented but also characterized by a relatively high degree of connection.
The state’s expenditure on health care amounts to almost 9 percent of GDP (the corresponding figure in Sweden is just over 9 percent). In case of illness, the insured has three waiting days before receiving sickness benefit. Low-paid and people 70 years of age or older are eligible for free health care at state hospitals and free drugs. Others pay hospital fees and drug costs. Half of the population have private health insurance in order to pay for their health care, and they usually also use private hospitals.
The family and the church have a very strong position in Ireland, and the Constitution states that the family is the basic unit of society. Divorce was only allowed in 1996.
In 2016, a UN report drew harsh criticism of Ireland’s ban on abortions, which it believed were discriminatory and cruel. The legislation only allowed abortion when the woman’s life was in danger and not when the fetus suffered severe injuries or when the pregnancy occurred due to rape or incest. In addition, 14 years in prison were risked if you did an abortion. According to the country’s health ministry, since 1983, 170,000 women have been forced to travel abroad to carry out abortions. The issue of abortion is controversial in the country, not least because of the strong position and moral authority of the Catholic Church. In 2018, a referendum was held to modernize the country’s restrictive abortion legislation. Jasidan won the election with just over 66 percent of the vote against the no-side’s just under 34 percent.