Republic of Ireland

Ireland or the Republic of Ireland is a nation in north-western Europe that comprises 26 of the island of Ireland's 32 counties. It is also known as the "Irish Free State." Dublin, the island's capital and main city, is located on the island's eastern side. The Greater Dublin Area is home to around 40 percent of the country's total population of 5 million people. Northern Ireland, which is a constituent of the United Kingdom, shares the sovereign state's sole land border with the country. It is otherwise surrounded by Atlantic Ocean, with Celtic Sea to a south, St George's Channel to a south-east, as well as the Irish Sea to the east. It is also bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. It is a unitary parliamentary republic with a monarchical government. The Oireachtas, or Irish parliament, is composed of three houses: the lower house, Dáil Éireann, the upper chamber, Seanad Éireann, and an elected As president (Uachtarán), who acts mostly as ceremonial head of state but also has certain key functions and responsibilities. Prime Minister Taoiseach (meaning 'Chief,' which is not used in English) is the head of government of Ireland. He is chosen by the Dáil and nominated by the President, and he in turn selects other cabinet members and government officials.

Following the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty in 1922, the Irish Free State was established with Dominion status. With the adoption of the new law in 1937, the state was renamed "Ireland" and essentially became a republic with a non-executive president who was also elected. Following the passage of the Republic of Ireland Act 1948, the country was formally recognised as a republic in 1949. In December 1955, Ireland was admitted as a member of the United Nations. In 1973, it became a member of the European Communities (EC), which was the forerunner of the European Union. For much of the twentieth century, the state had no official contacts with Northern Ireland; however, during the 1980s and 1990s, the British and Irish governments collaborated with the Northern Ireland parties in an effort to bring "the Troubles" to an end. Several policy areas have been jointly developed by the Irish government and the Northern Ireland Executive since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, as part of the North/South Council Of ministers established by the Agreement.

The city of Dublin is home to one of Europe's most important financial centres. Despite the fact that Ireland ranks among the world's top ten richest nations in terms of GDP per capita, the country's high ranking has been attributed to distortions generated by the tax inversion tactics of major multinational corporations operating in the country. The Central Bank of Ireland introduced a modified gross national income (GNI*) in 2017 since the standard deviation was deemed to be too materially skewed to effectively assess or reflect the Irish economy at the time of its implementation. Following Ireland's admission to the European Union, the country's government implemented a series of liberal economic policies that resulted in economic growth between 1995 and 2007, which has come to be known as the Celtic Tiger period, before the country's fortunes were turned upside down during the Great Recession.

Ireland, as a developed country, scores well in a variety of national performance criteria, including healthcare, economic freedom, and press freedom, among others. Ireland is a member of the European Union, as well as a founding member of the Council of Europe and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. Since shortly before to World War II, the Irish government has pursued a policy of military neutrality via non-alignment. As a result, the nation is not a member of NATO, but it is a member of Partnership for Peace and participates in certain areas of PESCO.