Ireland: a booming economy or a flash in the pan?

Résumé du document

When Ireland gained its independence from Great-Britain it had to face huge economic difficulties. The country was troubled by poverty and emigration until the early 1990s. These problems though virtually disappeared over the course of that decade, which saw the beginning of unprecedented economic success, a phenomenon known as the "Celtic Tiger? with 10% growth. In 10 years, Ireland has gone from one of the poorest nations in Europe to one of the dominant countries. However economists debate to understand if Ireland is really a booming economy or only a flash in the pan after the 2001 recession.

Extraits

[...] An important impulse was given to the economy thanks to European Union funds after the Ireland entrance in 1973. Now the economy of the Republic of Ireland is modern with growth averaging a robust 10% between 1995 and 2000. The unemployment rate decreased from 12% to during this period. As a consequence experts began to call the country the “Celtic Tiger” at that time. The GNP and the income per capita doubled in 7 years. Agriculture, once the most important sector, is now dwarfed by industry. [...]

[...] The minimum wage is also one of the highest in the EU with 8.65 an hour. A major economic bonus Ireland has received from EU membership has been agricultural subsidies from the Common Agricultural Policy. Once a beneficiary of the EU particularly of CAP grant Ireland is now a net contributor to the EU. III. The huge consequences of the economic boom on the society The Celtic Tiger period was followed by huge social progresses. The predominance of the Roman Catholic Church has had a significant impact on social legislation which remained very conservative until the middle of the 1990s. [...]

[...] Ireland is one of the most dynamic economies in Europe. Furthermore the consequences of the economic development on social and political life are so important that we can't consider it as an ephemeral phenomenon. Since a few years the country faces a lack of manpower though it has one of the most dynamic demography in developed countries. This need of labor force is filled by Asian and European immigration. Ireland is really attractive and thus the migration situation reverses compared to a few decades ago. [...]

[...] Only a flash in the pan? However the economy felt the impact of the global economic slowdown in 2001, particularly in the high-tech export sector. The growth rate in that area was cut by nearly half. Some economists are pessimistic about Ireland because 50% of its industrial production and 75% of its industrial exports come from firms with foreign funds, a paradoxical situation. The repatriation of profits explains the discrepancy between the GNP and the GDP. Ireland's GNP is indeed about 12 percent lower than its GDP. [...]

[...] Ireland: a booming economy or a flash in the pan? When Ireland gained its independence from Great-Britain it had to face huge economic difficulties. The country was troubled by poverty and emigration until the early 1990s. These problems though virtually disappeared over the course of that decade, which saw the beginning of unprecedented economic success, a phenomenon known as the “Celtic Tiger” with 10% growth. In 10 years, Ireland has gone from one of the poorest nations in Europe to one of its stars. [...]