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Economy of Iraq

The economy of Iraq is dominated by the oil sector, which has provided about 99.7% of foreign exchange earnings during its modern history. As of 2021, the oil sector provides about 92% of foreign exchange earnings. Iraq's hitherto agrarian economy underwent rapid development following the 14 July Revolution (1958) which overthrew the Hashemite Iraqi monarchy. It had become the third-largest economy in the Middle East by 1980. This occurred in part because of the Iraqi government's successful industrialization and infrastructure development initiatives in the 1970s, which included irrigation projects, railway and highway construction, and rural electrification.

In the 1980s, financial problems caused by massive expenditures in the Iran-Iraq War and damage to oil export facilities by Iran's military led the Ba'athist government to implement austerity measures, to borrow heavily, and to later reschedule foreign debt payments. Iraq suffered economic losses of at least $80 billion from the war. In 1988, the hostilities ended. Oil exports gradually increased with the construction of new pipelines and restoration of damaged facilities, but again underwent a sharp decline after the Persian Gulf War. GDP dropped to one-fourth of the country's 1980 gross domestic product and continued to decline under postwar international sanctions, until receiving aid from the U.N. Oil-for-Food Programme in 1997.

The Coalition Provisional Authority made efforts to modernize Iraq's economy after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, through privatization and reducing the country's foreign debt. As a result Iraq's economy expanded rapidly during this time, though growth was stunted by the insurgency, economic mismanagement, and oil shortages caused by outdated technology. Since mid-2009, oil export earnings have returned to levels seen before Operation New Dawn. Government revenues have rebounded, along with global oil prices. In 2011, Baghdad would increase oil exports above their then-current level of 1900000 oilbbl per day as a result of new contracts with international oil companies. The export was thought likely to fall short of the 2400000 oilbbl per day forecasting in the budget. Iraq's recent contracts with major oil companies have the potential to greatly expand oil revenues, but Iraq will need to upgrade its oil processing, pipeline, and export infrastructure to enable these deals to reach their potential.

An improved security environment and an initial wave of foreign investment are helping to spur economic activity, particularly in the energy, construction, and retail sectors. Broader economic improvement, long-term fiscal health, and sustained increases in the standard of living still depend on the government passing major policy reforms and on the continued development of Iraq's massive oil reserves. Although foreign investors viewed Iraq with increasing interest in 2010, most are still hampered by difficulties acquiring land for projects and other regulatory impediments.

Economic growth
Nominal GDP grew by 213% in the 1960s, 1325% in the 1970s, 2% in the 1980s, −47% in the 1990s, and 317% in 2000s.

Real GDP per capita (measured in $1990 ) increased significantly during the 1950s, 60s and 70s, which can be explained by both higher oil production levels as well as oil prices, which famously peaked in the 1970s due to the OPEC's oil embargo, causing the 1973 oil crisis. In the following two decades, however, GDP per capita in Iraq dropped substantially because of multiple wars, namely the 1980-88 war with Iran, the 1990-1991 Gulf War.

Iran-Iraq War
Before the outbreak of the war with Iran in September 1980, the economic outlook was positive. In 1979, oil production reached a level of 560,000 m³ (3.5 million barrels) per day, and oil revenues were 21 billion dollars in 1979 and $27 billion in 1980 due to record oil prices. Iraq had amassed an estimated $35 billion in foreign exchange reserves. It was believed to have one of the best education and health care systems in the Middle East, and thousands of migrant workers from Egypt, Somalia, and the Indian subcontinent were employed in construction projects. The Iran–Iraq War and the 1980s oil glut depleted Iraq's foreign exchange reserves, devastated its economy and left the country with a foreign debt of more than $40 billion. Oil exports gradually increased as new pipelines were constructed and damaged facilities were restored.

Sanctions
Iraq's seizure of Kuwait in August 1990, subsequent international economic sanctions on Iraq, and damage from military action by an international coalition beginning in January 1991, drastically reduced economic activity. The regime exacerbated shortages by supporting large military and internal security forces and by allocating resources to key supporters of the Ba'ath Party. The implementation of the UN's Oil for Food program in December 1996 helped improve economic conditions. For the first six six-month phases of the program, Iraq was allowed to export increasing amounts of oil in exchange for food, medicine, and other humanitarian goods. In December 1999, the UN Security Council authorized Iraq to export as much oil as required to meet humanitarian needs. Per capita, food imports increased substantially, while medical supplies and health care services steadily improved, though per capita economic production and living standards were still well below their prewar level.

Iraq changed its oil reserve currency from the U.S. dollar to the euro in 2000. However, 28% of Iraq's export revenues under the program were deducted to meet UN Compensation Fund and UN administrative expenses. The drop in GDP in 2001 was largely the result of the global economic slowdown and lower oil prices.

After invasion of Iraq 2003
The removal of sanctions on 24 May 2003 and rising oil prices in the mid-to-late 2000s led to a doubling in oil production from a low of 1.3 mbpd during the turbulence of 2003 to a high of 2.6 mbpd in 2011. Furthermore, reduced inflation and violence since 2007 have translated to real increases in living standards for Iraqis.

One of the key economic challenges was Iraq's immense foreign debt, estimated at $130 billion. Although some of this debt was derived from normal export contracts that Iraq had failed to pay for, some was a result of military and financial support during Iraq's war with Iran.

The Jubilee Iraq campaign argued that much of these debts were odious (illegitimate). However, as the concept of odious debt is not accepted, trying to deal with the debt on those terms would have embroiled Iraq in legal disputes for years. Iraq decided to deal with its debt more pragmatically and approached the Paris Club of official creditors.

In a December 2006 Newsweek International article, a study by Global Insight in London was reported to show "that Civil war or not, Iraq has an economy, and—mother of all surprises—it's doing remarkably well. Real estate is booming. Construction, retail and wholesale trade sectors are healthy, too, according to [the report]. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce reports 34,000 registered companies in Iraq, up from 8,000 three years ago. Sales of secondhand cars, televisions and mobile phones have all risen sharply. Estimates vary, but one from Global Insight puts GDP growth at 17 per cent last year and projects 13 per cent for 2006. The World Bank has it lower: at 4 per cent this year. But, given all the attention paid to deteriorating security, the startling fact is that Iraq is growing at all."

Industry
Since 1974, after the Iraqi Government took direct control of Iraq’s largest private oil production operations, Mosul Oil and Basra Oil, most of Iraq's manufacturing activity has been closely connected to the oil industry. The major industries in that category have been petroleum refining and the manufacture of chemicals and fertilizers. Before 2003, diversification was hindered by limitations on privatization and the effects of the international sanctions of the 1990s. Since 2003, security problems have blocked efforts to establish new enterprises. The construction industry is an exception; in 2000 cement was the only major industrial product not based on hydrocarbons. The construction industry has profited from the need to rebuild after Iraq's several wars. In the 1990s, the industry benefited from government funding of extensive infrastructure and housing projects and elaborate palace complexes.

Agriculture
Agriculture contributes just 3.3% to the gross national product but employs a fifth of the labor force.

Historically, 50 to 60 per cent of Iraq's arable land was under cultivation. Under the UN Oil for Food program, Iraq imported large quantities of grains, meat, poultry, and dairy products. In 1981, the government abolished its collective farming program. During the Gulf War, Iraqi agriculture was disrupted physically and suffered from Economic sanctions imposed by the United Nations. Imports were curtailed, petroleum exports were cut off and agricultural production with potential military application was halted. The Iraqi government responded by monopolizing grain and oilseed marketing, imposing production quotas, and instituting a Public Distribution System for basic foodstuffs. By mid-1991, the government supplied a "basket" of foodstuffs that provided about one-third of the caloric daily requirement and cost consumers about five percent of its market value. With subsidies for agricultural inputs diminished, the government's prices failed to cover their costs. Tax on agricultural production reached 20 to 35 percent by the mid-1990s. In October 1991 the Baghdad regime withdrew personnel from the northern region controlled by two Kurdish parties. Kurdistan Region was described as "... a market economy essentially left alone by a fragile governing structure, but heavily influenced by substantial international humanitarian aid flows."

In December 1996, under an "Oil for Food Program" negotiated with the United Nations, Iraq started exporting petroleum and used the proceeds to import foodstuffs. Grain imports averaged $828 million from 1997 to 2001, an increase of over 180 percent from the previous five-year period. Due to foreign competition, Iraqi production declined (29 percent for wheat, 31 percent for barley, and 52 percent for maize). Because the government had neglected the production of forage crops, fruits, vegetables, and livestock other than poultry, those sectors were less buffeted by international affairs. Nevertheless, they were affected by severe drought, an outbreak of screwworm, and an epizootic of foot-and-mouth disease As the Oil for Food Program expanded to cover more agricultural inputs and machinery, the productivity of Iraqi agriculture stabilized around 2002.

After the U.S. invasion in March 2003, many Iraqis became dependent on government-subsidized food. The US-funded agricultural reconstruction program thus focused on increased productivity under the aegis of Agricultural Reconstruction and Development Iraq (ARDI). Another program was run by Development Alternatives, Inc. (DAI) of Bethesda, Maryland. The restoration of Iraq's irrigation systems was largely funded by Bechtel International.

ARDI conducted trials to improve farming practices and crop varieties of winter cereals (wheat and barley), summer cereals (rice, maize, and sorghum), potatoes, and tomatoes. Feed supplements and veterinary treatments were introduced to increase ovulation, conception, and birth weights of livestock. Surveys were conducted of poultry growers and apple farmers. Nurseries were established for date palms and grapes. ARDI had projects promoting trade associations and producers' co-ops and supported extension as an appropriate governmental function. The contract eventually cost over $100 million and lasted through December 2006. Under its Community Action Program, USAID also funded an analysis of markets for sheep and wool. It awarded a contract to the University of Hawaii to revitalize higher education in agriculture. It awarded a contract for $120 million to the Louis Berger Group to promote Iraq's private sector, including agriculture.

Starting in 2006, Provincial Reconstruction Teams were sent in to promote goodwill and sap the insurgency. "PRTs" allowed military commanders to identify local needs and, with few bureaucratic hurdles, to dispense up to $500,000. Civilians from many agencies within the U.S. Department of Agriculture, as well as USAID, served tours on PRTs. Some participants criticized the absence of a national agricultural strategy, or clear direction on the design of projects. Others complained that projects emphasized "American-style, 21st-century agricultural technologies and methodologies..." that were inappropriate for Iraq.

Agricultural production did not rebound from the reconstruction program. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), between 2002 and 2013, the production of wheat increased 11 percent and milled rice 8 percent, but barley had decreased 13 percent and maize 40 percent. Scaled in "international dollars" (2004-2006 base equaling 100) Iraq's per capita food production was 135 in 2002, 96 in 2007, and 94 in 2012. The agricultural sector shed workers. In those same years, production per worker was 117, 106, and 130, respectively.

The international Oil-for-Food program (1997–2003) further reduced farm production by supplying artificially priced foreign foodstuffs. Because of favorable weather conditions, grain production was 22 percent higher than in 2002. Although growth continued in 2004, experts predicted that Iraq would be an importer of agricultural products for the foreseeable future. Long-term plans call for investment in agricultural machinery and materials and more prolific crop varieties—improvements that did not reach Iraq's farmers under the Hussein regime. In 2004, the main crops were wheat, barley, corn, rice, vegetables, dates, and cotton, and the main livestock outputs were cattle and sheep.

The Agricultural Cooperative Bank, capitalized at nearly 1 G$ - by 1984, targets its low-interest, low-collateral loans to private farmers for mechanization, poultry projects, and orchard development. Large modern cattle, dairy, and poultry farms are under construction. Obstacles to agricultural development include labor shortages, inadequate management and maintenance, salinization, urban migration, and dislocations resulting from previous land reform and collectivization programs.

In 2011, an agricultural adviser to the Iraqi government, Layth Mahdi, summarized the forced United States agricultural reconstruction:"Before 2003, Iraq had imported about 30 per cent of its food needs annually. The decline in agricultural production after this period, created the need for importing 90 per cent of the food at a cost estimated at more than $12 billion annually. Due to the sudden shift in the agricultural policy from subsidized assistance to an immediate shift to a free market policy, the outcomes led to a decline in production. The observed outcome resulted in many farmers abandoning the land and agriculture. The impact on natural resources results in an exploited and degraded environment leaving the land destitute and the people impoverished, unemployed [and] experiencing a sense of losing their human dignity."Importation of foreign workers and increased entry of women into traditionally male labour roles have helped compensate for agricultural and industrial labour shortages exacerbated by the war. A disastrous attempt to drain the southern marshes and introduce irrigated farming to this region merely destroyed a natural food producing area, while concentration of salts and minerals in the soil due to the draining left the land unsuitable for agriculture.

In the Mada'in Qada region east of Baghdad, hundreds of small farmers united to form the Green Mada'in Association for Agricultural Development, an agricultural cooperative that provides its members with drip irrigation and greenhouses as well as access to credit.

In recent years, farmers have been confronted with reduced rainfall and high temperatures. Particularly affected are small scale farmers who, unable to withstand lower water levels, are forced to leave their lands in search of different ways to fulfill their livelihoods.

Forestry, fishing, and mining
Throughout the twentieth century, human exploration, shifting agriculture, forest fires, and uncontrolled grazing denuded large areas of Iraq's natural forests, which in 2005 were almost exclusively confined to the northeastern highlands. Most of the trees found in that region are not suitable for lumbering. In 2002, a total of 112,000 cubic meters of wood were harvested, nearly half of which was used as fuel.

Despite its notable large rivers, Iraq's fishing industry has remained relatively small and based largely on marine species in the Persian Gulf. In 2001, the approximate yield was 8,000 tons (compared to 18,000/t during the period between 1981-1997) according to official government estimates.

Aside from hydrocarbons, Iraq's mining industry has been confined to extraction of relatively small amounts of phosphates (at Akashat), salt, and sulfur (near Mosul). Since a productive period in the 1970s, the mining industry has been hampered by the Iran–Iraq War (1980–88), the sanctions of the 1990s, and the economic collapse of 2003.

Energy

Iraq is one of the most oil-rich countries in the world. The country holding the fifth largest proven crude oil reserves, totalling 147.22 billion barrels at the end of 2017. Most of this oil—4 million barrels per day out of 4.3 million barrels produced daily—is exported, making Iraq the third-largest exporter of oil. Despite its ongoing civil war, Iraq was able to increase oil production during 2015 and 2016, with production dipping by 3.5 per cent in 2017 due to conflict with the Kurdistan Regional Government and OPEC production limits. By world standards, production costs for Iraqi oil are relatively low. However, four wars —the 1980–1988 Iraq-Iran War, 1991 Gulf War, the 2003–2011 War in Iraq, and the civil war—and the 1991–2003 UN sanctions have left the industry's infrastructure in poor condition, and the de facto independence of oil-rich Kurdistan Region have limited production.

In the 1970s, Iraq produced over 3.5 million barrels of oil per day. Production began to fall during the Iran-Iraq War, before plummeting 85 per cent after the 1991 invasion of Kuwait. UN sanctions prevented the export of oil until 1996, and then allowed exports only in exchange for humanitarian aid in the Oil-for-Food Programme. The 2003 lifting of sanctions enabled production—and exports—to restart. Production has since recovered to pre-Gulf War levels, and most of Iraq's oil infrastructure has been repaired, despite persistent sabotage by the Islamic State (ISIL) and others. In 2004, Iraq had eight oil refineries, the largest of which were at Baiji, Basra, and Daura.

Despite its oil wealth, sabotage and technical problems at refineries have forced Iraq to import petroleum, other refined oil products, and electricity from neighbouring countries, especially Iran. In 2004, for example, Iraq spent $60 million per month for imported gasoline. Sabotage In late 2004 and early 2005, regular sabotage of plants and pipelines reduced export and domestic distribution of oil, particularly to Baghdad. Nationwide fuel shortages and power outages resulted. Persistent ISIL sabotage of pipelines, power plants and power lines, and theft of oil and electricity have also contributed to the July 2018 protests in southern Iraq.

In 2004, plans called for increased domestic utilization of natural gas to replace oil and for use in the petrochemical industry. However, because most of Iraq's gas output is associated with oil, output growth depends on developments in the oil industry.

Half of Iraq's power plants were destroyed in the Persian Gulf War of 1991, and full recovery never occurred. In mid-2004, Iraq had an estimated 5,000 megawatts of power-generating capacity, compared with 7,500 megawatts of demand. At that time, the transmission system included 17,700 kilometres of line. In 2004, plans called for construction of two new power plants and restoration of existing plants and transmission lines to ease the blackouts and economic hardship caused by this shortfall, but sabotage and looting kept capacity below 6,000 megawatts. The ongoing civil war, sabotage of transmission lines, and government corruption caused the electricity shortage to worsen: by 2010 demand outstripped supply by 6000 megawatts.

Oil continues to dominate Iraq's economy. , oil is responsible for over 65 per cent of GDP, 90 per cent of government revenue. Petroleum constitutes 94% of Iraq's exports with a value of $59.73 billion in 2017. The central government hopes to diversify the economy away from oil, and has had some success: non-oil GDP growth, which was below the regional average from 2014 to 2016, pushed above the average in 2017. Despite this, the per cent of government spending going to non-oil investment has continued to decline since 2013 and now stands at only 34 per cent.

2009 oil services contracts
Between June 2009 and February 2010 the Iraqi Oil Ministry tendered for the award of Service Contracts to develop Iraq's existing oil fields. The results of the tender, which were broadcast live on Iraqi television, are as follows for all major fields awarded but excluding the Kurdistan Region where Production Sharing Contracts have been awarded that are currently being disputed by the Baghdad government. All contracts are awaiting final ratification of the awards by the Iraqi government. Company shares are subject to change as a result of commercial negotiations between parties.

Notes:

 * 1) Field shares are as a % of the total. The Iraqi state retains a 25% share in all fields for which service contracts have been awarded.
 * 2) Production increase share is the millions of bbls per day that will attract the service fee for the company.
 * 3) Gross revenue at plateau is the total payment each company will receive upon reaching their declared target plateau production rate (in between 5 and 8 years, depending on the field), before deduction of any operating costs, in addition to recovery of all development costs as billions of US dollars per annum. The total gross revenue for all companies, after recovery of capital costs, is at plateau production of an additional 9.4 mb/d, 4.34 bn US per annum, at a $70 bbl oil price. The 2010 Iraq govt budget is $60 billion. $300 billion is approximately $10,000 per annum for each Iraqi citizen.

In summary the shares by region in the increased production are:

Finance
Iraq's financial services have been the subject of post-Hussein reforms. The 17 private banks established during the 1990s were limited to domestic transactions and attracted few private depositors. Those banks and two main state banks were badly damaged by the international embargo of the 1990s. To further privatize and expand the system, in 2003 the Coalition Provisional Authority removed restrictions on international bank transactions and freed the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) from government control. In its first year of independent operation, the CBI received credit for limiting Iraq's inflation. In 2004, three foreign banks received licenses to do business in Iraq.

Private security
Because of the danger posed by Iraq's ongoing insurgency, the security industry has been a uniquely prosperous part of the services sector. Often run by former US military personnel, in 2005 at least 26 companies offered personal and institutional protection, surveillance, and other forms of security.

Retail
In the early post-Hussein period, a freewheeling retail trade in all types of commodities straddled the line between legitimate and illegitimate commerce, taking advantage of the lack of income tax and import controls.

Tourism
The Iraq tourism industry, which in peaceful times has profited from Iraq's many places of cultural interest (earning US$14 million in 2001), has been dormant since 2003. Despite conditions, in 2005 the Iraqi Tourism Board maintained a staff of 2,500 and 14 regional offices. Between 2009 and 2010, 165 tourists from 16 countries entered Iraq to visit historic sites; as of January 2011, a U.S. State Department grant provided $2 million to help preserve Babylon, supporting the re-opening of one of the site's two museums.

Telecommunications
From 2003 to 2008, mobile phone subscriptions had expanded over hundred-fold to ten million nationwide, according to the Brookings Institution.

Labor force
In 2002, Iraq's labour force was estimated at 6.8 million people.

In 1996, some 66.4 per cent of the labour force worked in services, 17.5 per cent in industry, and 16.1 per cent in agriculture. 2004 estimates of Iraq's unemployment ranged from 30 per cent to 60 per cent.

The CPA has referred to a 25% unemployment rate, the Iraqi Ministry of Planning mentioned a 30% unemployment rate, whereas the Iraqi Ministry of Social Affairs claims it to be 48%. Other sources are claiming a 20% unemployment rate and a probably 60% under-employment rate. The actual figure is problematic because of high participation in black-market activities and poor security conditions in many populous areas. In central Iraq, security concerns discouraged the hiring of new workers and the resumption of regular work schedules. At the same time, the return of Iraqis from other countries increased the number of job seekers. In late 2004, most legitimate jobs were in the government, the army, the oil industry, and security-related enterprises. Under Saddam Hussein Hussein, many of the highest-paid workers were employed by the greatly overstaffed government, whose overthrow disrupted the input of these people to the economy. In 2004, the U.S. Agency for International Development committed US$1 billion for a worker-training program. In early 2004, the minimum wage was US$72 per month.

External trade
Iraq is a founding member of OPEC. Petroleum constitutes 99,7% of Iraq's exports with a value of $43,8 billion in 2016.

From the 1990s until 2003, the international trade embargo restricted Iraq's export activity almost exclusively to oil. In 2003, oil accounted for about US$7.4 billion of Iraq's total US$7.6 billion of export value, and statistics for earlier years showed similar proportions. After the end of the trade embargo in 2003 expanded the range of exports, oil continued to occupy the dominant position: in 2004 Iraq's export income doubled (to US$16.5 billion), but oil accounted for all but US$340 million (2 per cent) of the total. In late 2004, sabotage significantly reduced oil output, and experts forecast that output, hence exports, would be below capacity in 2005 as well. In 2004, the chief export markets were the United States (which accounted for nearly half), Italy, France, Jordan, Canada, and the Netherlands. In 2004, the value of Iraq's imports was US$21.7 billion, incurring a trade deficit of about US$5.2 billion. In 2003, the main sources of Iraq's imports were Turkey, Jordan, Vietnam, the United States, Germany, and Britain. Because of Iraq's inactive manufacturing sector, the range of imports was quite large, including food, fuels, medicines, and manufactured goods. By 2010, exports rose to US$50.8 billion and imports rose to US$45.2 billion. Chief 2009 export partners were: U.S., India, Italy, South Korea, Taiwan, China, Netherlands, and Japan. Chief 2009 import partners were: Turkey, Syria, U.S., China, Jordan, Italy, and Germany.

In March 2022, Iran-Iraq trade reached a volume of 10 billion USD, as joint ventures increased significantly but were still limited due to sanctions against Iran. Especially goods originating from Iran were subject to a trade embargo imposed by the US and the European Union. Iran and Iraq signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on economic cooperation back in January 2021.

title: Economy of Iraq


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Transport in Iraq

Transport in Iraq consists of railways, highways, waterways, pipelines, ports and harbors, marines and airports.

Railways
total: 2,272 km standard gauge: 2,272 km

For more than two decades there have been plans for building a metro system in Baghdad. It is possible that part of the tunnels have been built, but that they are now used for military, shelter, hiding, and escaping purposes. U.N. inspectors have heard of the tunnels for years, but have not found their entrances. map   In November, 2008, an overground service dubbed the Baghdad Metro began service. Local government in Baghdad is arranging feasibility studies for the construction of two new underground lines

A 37 km monorail is planned in Najaf, which would link three Shi'ite holy sites.

The first Iraqi Republic Railways train to Basra since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein's regime arrived on 26 April 2003. British troops hope to use the 68 km long railway to transport much-needed aid supplies from the port town of Umm Qasr to Basra.

In June 2011, it was announced that planning had begun for a new high-speed rail line between Baghdad and Basra, with a memorandum of understanding with Alstom having been signed.

Maps

 * UNHCR Atlas Map
 * UN Map

Railway links with adjacent countries
All adjacent countries generally use, but may vary in couplings. Neighbours with electrified railways – Turkey and Iran – both use the world standard 25 kVAC

 * 🇹🇷 Turkey – via Syria
 * 🇮🇷 Iran – one link partially under construction and a second link planned
 * Iraq-Iran Basra-Shalamcheh line – almost complete (2006)
 * Kermanshah, Iran, and the Iraqi province of Diyala – construction commenced.
 * 🇰🇼 Kuwait – no railways
 * 🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia -
 * 🇯🇴 Jordan – partially constructed – break of gauge / gauge
 * Syria – same gauge – at Rabiaa/al-Ya'rubiya

Road Transport
An overland trans-desert bus service between Beirut, Haifa, Damascus and Baghdad was established by the Nairn Transport Company of Damascus in 1923.

Roads
total: 44,900 km paved: 37,851 km, unpaved: 7,049 km (2002)

Waterways
5,729 km (Euphrates River (2,815 km), Tigris River 1,899 km, Third River (565 km)); Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about 130 km. The channel has been dredged to 3 m and is in use. The Tigris and Euphrates Rivers have navigable sections for shallow-draft watercraft; the Shatt al Basrah canal was navigable by shallow-draft craft before closing in 1991 because of the Gulf War.

Pipelines
crude oil 5,432 km; natural gas 2,455 km; refined products 1,637 km; liquid petroleum gas 913 km

Persian Gulf

 * Umm Qasr Port
 * Khawr az Zubayr
 * Al Basrah has limited functionality
 * Grand Faw Port (Under construction)

Merchant marine
total: 32 ships (with a volume of or over) totaling / ships by type: cargo ship 14, passenger ship 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 13, refrigerated cargo 1, roll-on/roll-off ship 2 (1999 est.)

Airports
Iraq has about 104 airports as of 2012. Major airports include:
 * Baghdad International Airport
 * Basra International Airport
 * Mosul International Airport
 * Erbil International Airport
 * Sulaimaniyah International Airport
 * Najaf International Airport

Heliports
20 (2012)

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

title: Transport in Iraq


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Foreign relations of Iraq

Since 1980, the foreign relations of Iraq have been influenced by a number of controversial decisions by the Saddam Hussein administration. Hussein had good relations with the Soviet Union and a number of western countries such as France and Germany, who provided him with advanced weapons systems. He also developed a tenuous relation with the United States, who supported him during the Iran–Iraq War. However, the Invasion of Kuwait that triggered the Gulf War brutally changed Iraq's relations with the Arab World and the West. Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Syria and others were among the countries that supported Kuwait in the UN coalition. After the Hussein administration was toppled by the 2003 U.S. invasion, the governments that succeeded it have now tried to establish relations with various nations.

Diplomatic relations
List of countries which Iraq maintains diplomatic relations with:

Europe
In September 2005, a joint political declaration between the European Union and Iraq was signed which forms the basis of regular political dialogue. A Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the EU and Iraq is in the process of being negotiated and will probably be concluded during 2008.

July 2005 saw the introduction of EUJUST LEX, the European Union's rule of law operation intended to train Iraqi police and legal officials in human rights along with other issues. Over 1,400 Iraqis have already taken part in training courses.

Member of international organizations
Iraq belongs to the following international organizations: Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development, Arab League, Arab Monetary Fund, Council of Arab Economic Unity, Customs Cooperation Council, Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia, G-77, International Atomic Energy Agency, International Monetary Fund, International Maritime Organization, Interpol, International Organization for Standardization, International Telecommunication Union, Non-Aligned Movement, Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries, Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, United Nations, Universal Postal Union, World Health Organization and World Bank, MENAFATF.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Iraq's relations with other countries and with international organizations are supervised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. In 1988 the minister of foreign affairs was Tariq Aziz, who was an influential leader of the Ba'ath Party and had served in that post since 1983. Aziz, Saddam Hussein, and the other members of the Revolutionary Command Council (RCC) formulated Iraq's foreign policy, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs bureaucracy implemented RCC directives. The Baath maintained control over the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and over all Iraqi diplomatic missions abroad.

Since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein in 2003, Hoshyar Zebari was first appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Iraqi Governing Council in Baghdad on 3 September 2003. On 28 June 2004, he was reappointed as Minister of Foreign Affairs by the Iraqi Interim Government, under Prime Minister Ayad Allawi. On 3 May 2005 he was sworn in as Minister of Foreign Affairs by the Iraqi Transitional Government, under Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari. On 20 May 2006, he was delegated in for the fourth consecutive time as Foreign Minister in the government of Nouri Al-Maliki.

International disputes
Iran and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and freedom of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt al-Arab waterway; in November 1994, Iraq formally accepted the United Nations-demarcated border with Kuwait which had been spelled out in Security Council Resolutions 687 (1991), 773 (1992), and 883 (1993); this formally ends earlier claims to Kuwait and to Bubiyan and Warbah islands although the government continues periodic rhetorical challenges; dispute over water development plans by Turkey for the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

title: Foreign relations of Iraq


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Demographics of the Republic of Ireland

Ireland had an estimated population of 5,281,600 as of 1 April 2023.

Demographic history
The island of Ireland's population has fluctuated over history. In the 18th and early 19th centuries, Ireland experienced a major population boom as a result of the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions. In the 50-year period 1790–1840, the population of the island doubled from 4 million to 8 million. At its peak, Ireland's population density was similar to that of England and continental Europe.

This changed dramatically with the Great Famine of the mid-19th century, which led to mass starvation and consequent mass emigration. In the area covering the present day Republic of Ireland, the population reached about 6.5 million in the mid-1840s. Ten years later it was down to 5 million. The population continued a slow decline well into the 20th century, with the Republic recording a low of 2.8 million in the 1961 census.

During the 1960s, the population started to grow once more, although slowly as emigration was still common. In the 1990s the country entered a period of rapid economic growth as a result of the Celtic Tiger Irish economic boom, and the Republic started to receive immigration. Many former Irish emigrants returned home, and Ireland became an attractive destination for immigrants, from other member states EU such as Central Europe, but also from outside the EU such as Africa, Asia and elsewhere. With the 2008 onset of the Irish economic and banking crisis, the state's economy suffered, and Ireland has once again been experiencing net emigration of its citizens, but immigration remains high.

In November 2013, Eurostat reported that the Republic had the largest net emigration rate of any member state, at 7.6 emigrants per 1,000 population. However, it has the youngest population of any European Union member state and its population size is predicted to grow for many decades, in contrast with the declining population predicted for most European countries. A report published in 2008 predicted that the population would reach 6.7 million by 2060. The Republic has also been experiencing a baby boom, with increasing birth rates and overall fertility rates. Despite this, the total fertility rate is still below replacement depending on when the measurement is taken. The Irish fertility rate is still the highest of any European country. This increase is significantly fuelled by non-Irish immigration – in 2009, one-quarter of all babies born in Ireland were born to foreign-born mothers.

Population
The population of Ireland was 5,123,536 people in 2022. Demographic statistics as of 2019.
 * One birth every 8 minutes
 * One death every 16 minutes
 * One net migrant every 90 minutes
 * Net gain of one person every 14 minutes

 * Geographic Population Distribution

Urban population (areas with >1,500 people): 62.0% (2011)

Rural population: 38.0% (2011)

Fertility
The total fertility rate is the number of children born per woman. Birth rate; 13.8 births/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 137th

Total fertility rate; 1.96 children born/woman (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 125th

Mother's mean age at first birth; 30.7 years (2015 est.)

Life expectancy

Death rate; 6.6 deaths/1,000 population (2018 est.) Country comparison to the world: 140th Source: UN World Population Prospects

Age structure
Age structure

 * 0–14 years: 21.37% (male 554,110 /female 529,067)
 * 15–24 years: 11.92% (male 306,052 /female 297,890)
 * 25–54 years: 42.86% (male 1,091,495 /female 1,080,594)
 * 55–64 years: 10.53% (male 267,255 /female 266,438)
 * 65 years and over: 13.32% (male 312,694 /female 362,455) (2018 est.)

Median age; total: 37.1 years

 * male: 36.8 years
 * female: 37.5 years (2018 est.)

Vital statistics
c = Census results.

Immigration
Ireland's immigration history (and of one of a multi-ethnic society) is most of that of a country of emigration, remaining exclusively homogeneous for the vast majority of 20th century history, rather than one of net migration and increased ethnic and racial diversity.

However, from the 1990s, with the rise of the 'Celtic Tiger', the nation shifted to one of a net receiver of immigration at a rapid pace, changing from one of the most 'homogeneous countries in the EU, to a country with a rate of change almost unparalleled in speed and scale'. The Celtic Tiger economic boom saw a large expansion of the labour market, which contributed to the large increase of immigration towards the country, with the additional enlargement of the European Union in 2004 and the further 2007 enlargement contributing to increased levels of immigration.

Additionally, asylum seekers rose dramatically as well: from 364 in 1994 to 11,634 in 2002, before falling off towards the end of the decade. The Irish Government amended legislation in 2023 with the intention of streamlining the naturalisation process.

 * Net migration rate: 6.8 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2023 est.)
 * Country comparison to the world: 13th

Nationalities
Ireland contains several immigrant communities, especially in Dublin and other cities across the country. The largest immigrant groups, with over 10,000 people, being Poles, British, Indians, Romanians, Lithuanians, Brazilians, Italians, Latvians, Spaniards, French, Croats, Americans, Chinese, Germans and Ukrainians.

Nationality of mothers
Of the 57,540 births in 2022, there were 43,651 babies (76%) born to mothers of Irish nationality compared to 45,381 (78%) in 2021. There were 8.3% of births to mothers of EU15 to EU27 nationality, 1.9% of mothers were of UK nationality, and 2.3% were of EU14 nationality (excluding Ireland). Mothers of nationalities other than Ireland, UK and the EU accounted for 12% of total births registered. There were 0.01% of mothers where the nationality was not stated.

Country of birth
In 2022, 20% of the usually resident population in Ireland were born elsewhere, an increase of 3% since 2016. This represented 1,017,437 people, an increase of 207,031 from six years previously.

Support and accommodation
Migrants are supported/represented by the Immigrant Council of Ireland, Irish Refugee Council, Movement of Asylum Seekers in Ireland, Nasc and the state's Irish Naturalisation and Immigration Service. They are managed by the International Protection Accommodation Service under the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth (DCEDIY) as well being policed by the Garda National Immigration Bureau. Some minor parties have voiced opposition to immigration in the country and its capability to continue to let refugees in; that "Ireland is full". They include the National Party and the Irish Freedom Party. The DCEDIY projected a shortfall of 15,000 beds for refugees in December 2022 and admitted that there was mounting pressure to house 65,000 people.

Approximately 7,400 refugee adults and children were projected to be living in 38 "direct provision" centres across 17 counties in Ireland by the end of April 2020. The government of Ireland have said that they project to end direct provision by 2024 and are looking towards alternative forms of accommodation.

Religion
Ireland is a predominantly Christian country. The majority are Catholic; however, the number of people who declare themselves Catholic has been declining in recent years. Irreligion has increased since 2016 with 14% declaring 'No Religion' in 2022, meaning this is the second largest religious affiliation in Ireland. Immigration has also brought other faiths, with Islam at 1.7%, or over 83,000 people. As well as Hinduism, with 33,043 Hindus in the state, an increase of over 250% from 2016.

Languages
English is the most commonly used language, with 84% of the population calling it their mother tongue. Irish is the first official language of the state, with 11% calling it their mother tongue. Irish is the main language of the Gaeltacht regions, where 102,973 people lived as of 2022. The main sign language used is Irish Sign Language.

Education
Literacy rate; definition: age 15 and over who can read and write
 * total population: 99%
 * male: 99%
 * female: 99% (2003 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education); total: 19 years
 * male: 19 years
 * female: 19 years (2016)

Employment and income
For November 2022 the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was:

Unchanged at 4.3% for males from October 2022, and down from 5.3% in November 2021.

Unchanged at 4.6% for females from October 2022, and down from 5.2% in November 2021.

Unchanged at 12.1% for persons aged 15–24 years (youth unemployment rate) from a revised rate of 12.1% in October 2022.

Down to 3.3% for persons aged 25–74 years from 3.4% in October 2022.

The median household disposable income in 2020 was €46,471, an increase of €2,556 (+5.8%) from the previous year. Disposable household income is gross household income less total tax, social insurance contributions, pension contributions and inter-household transfers paid.

title: Demographics of the Republic of Ireland


text:
Politics of the Republic of Ireland

Ireland is a parliamentary, representative democratic republic and a member state of the European Union. While the head of state is the popularly elected President of Ireland, it is a largely ceremonial position, with real political power being vested in the Taoiseach, who is nominated by the Dáil and is the head of the government.

Executive power is exercised by the government, which consists of no more than 15 cabinet ministers, inclusive of the Taoiseach and Tánaiste (the deputy head of government). Legislative power is vested in the Oireachtas, the bicameral national parliament, which consists of Dáil Éireann, Seanad Éireann and the President of Ireland. The judiciary is independent of the executive and the legislature. The head of the judiciary is the Chief Justice, who presides over the Supreme Court.

Ireland has a multi-party system. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael, historically opposed and competing entities, which both occupy the traditional centre ground, trace their roots to the opposing sides of the Irish Civil War. All governments since 1932 have been led by one or the other party, with Fianna Fáil having had sufficient support at many elections to govern alone. Fluctuations in seat levels allowed changes in governments through different coalitions. From 1932 to 2011, the parties were stable in their support, with Fianna Fáil the largest at each election, Fine Gael the second largest, and on all but two occasions, the Labour Party the third party. The last three elections, however, have each had more volatile results. At the 2011 election, the largest parties in order were Fine Gael, Labour and Fianna Fáil; at the 2016 election, the largest parties in order were Fine Gael, Fianna Fáil and Sinn Féin; and at the 2020 election, the largest parties were Fianna Fáil first in seats (second in votes), Sinn Féin second in seats (first in votes), and then Fine Gael. The result was historically good for Sinn Féin.

In June 2020, leader of Fianna Fáil, Micheál Martin, became the new Taoiseach (head of government). He formed a historic three-party coalition consisting of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and the Green Party. It was the first time in history that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael were in the same government. The previous Taoiseach and leader of Fine Gael, Leo Varadkar, became the Tánaiste (deputy head of government). Martin led the country as Taoiseach until 17 December 2022, when he changed posts with Varadkar.

According to the V-Dem Democracy indices Ireland was the "7th most electoral democratic country" in the world in 2023.

Constitution
The state operates under the Constitution of Ireland (Bunreacht na hÉireann) which was adopted in 1937 by means of a plebiscite. The constitution falls within the liberal democratic tradition. It defines the organs of government and guarantees certain fundamental rights. The Constitution can only be amended by means of a referendum. Important constitutional referendums have concerned issues such as abortion, the status of the Catholic Church, divorce, the European Union and same-sex marriage.

President

The head of state is the President of Ireland. In keeping with the state's parliamentary system of government, the President exercises a mainly ceremonial role but does possess certain specific powers. The presidency is open to all Irish citizens who are at least 35. They are directly elected by secret ballot under the alternative vote. A candidate may be nominated for election as president by no fewer than 20 members of the Oireachtas or by four or more of Ireland's 31 County and City Councils. A retiring President may nominate themselves as a candidate for re-election. If only one valid candidate is nominated for election, for example if there is consensus among the political parties to nominate a single candidate, it is unnecessary to proceed to a ballot and that candidate is deemed elected. The President is elected to a seven-year term of office and no person may serve more than two terms.

In carrying out certain of their constitutional functions, the President is aided by the Council of State. There is no vice-president in Ireland. If for any reason the President is unable to carry out their functions, or if the Office of President is vacant, the duties of the President are carried out by the Presidential Commission.

The President may not veto bills passed by the Oireachtas but may, after consultation with the Council of State, refer them to the Supreme Court of Ireland for a ruling on whether they comply with the constitution. The President may refuse a request of the Taoiseach for a dissolution of Dáil Éireann, although no request for a dissolution has ever been refused.

Legislative branch

Article 15 of the Constitution of Ireland established the Oireachtas as the national parliament of Ireland. The Oireachtas consists of the President of Ireland and two elected houses: Dáil Éireann (the House of Representatives) and Seanad Éireann (the Senate). As the Oireachtas also consists of the President, the title of the two law-making houses is the Houses of the Oireachtas. The Dáil is by far the dominant house of the legislature.

Dáil Éireann
Members of the Dáil are directly elected at least once in every five years under the single transferable vote form of proportional representation from multi-seat constituencies. Membership of the house is open to all Irish citizens who are at least 21 and permanently resident in the State. The electorate consists of all Irish and British citizens resident in Ireland over the age of 18. Members of the Dáil are known as Teachta Dála or TDs. As of 2021, there are 160 TDs, of which one, the Ceann Comhairle (Presiding Officer), is automatically returned at an election. The Taoiseach, Tánaiste and the Minister for Finance must be members of the Dáil. The Dáil is the only House which can introduce and amend money bills (i.e. financial and tax legislation). Since the early 1980s, no single party has had a majority in Dáil Éireann, so that coalition governments have been the norm.

Seanad Éireann
The Seanad is a largely advisory body. It consists of sixty members called Senators. An election for the Seanad must take place no later than 90 days after a general election for the members of the Dáil. Eleven Senators are nominated by the Taoiseach while a further six are elected by certain national universities. The remaining 43 are elected from special vocational panels of candidates, the electorate for which consists of the 60 members of the outgoing Senate, the 160 TDs of the incoming Dáil and the 883 elected members of 31 local authorities. The Seanad has the power to delay legislative proposals and is allowed 90 days to consider and amend bills sent to it by the Dáil (excluding money bills). The Seanad is only allowed 21 days to consider money bills sent to it by the Dáil. The Seanad cannot amend money bills but can make recommendations to the Dáil on such bills. No more than two members of a government may be members of the Seanad, and only twice since 1937 have members of the Seanad been appointed to government.

Executive branch

Executive authority is exercised by a cabinet known simply as the Government. Article 28 of the Constitution states that the Government may consist of no less than seven and no more than fifteen members, namely the Taoiseach (prime minister), the Tánaiste (deputy prime minister) and up to thirteen other ministers. The Minister for Finance is the only other position named in the Constitution. The Taoiseach is appointed by the President, after being nominated by Dáil Éireann. The remaining ministers are nominated by the Taoiseach and appointed by the President following their approval by the Dáil. The Government must enjoy the confidence of Dáil Éireann and, in the event that they cease to enjoy the support of the lower house, the Taoiseach must either resign or request the President to dissolve the Dáil, in which case a general election follows.

Judicial branch

Ireland is a common law jurisdiction. The judiciary consists of the Supreme Court, the Court of Appeal and the High Court established by the Constitution and other lower courts established by statute law. Judges are appointed by the President after being nominated by the Government and can be removed from office only for misbehaviour or incapacity, and then only by resolution of both houses of the Oireachtas. The final court of appeal is the Supreme Court, which consists of the Chief Justice, nine ordinary judges and, ex officio the Presidents of the Court of Appeal and the High Court. The Supreme Court rarely sits as a full bench and normally hears cases in chambers of three, five or seven judges.

The courts established by the constitution have the power of judicial review and may declare to be invalid both laws and acts of the state which are repugnant to the constitution.

Public sector
The Government, through the civil and public services and state-sponsored bodies, is a significant employer in the state; these three sectors are often called the public sector. Management of these various bodies vary, for instance in the civil service there will be clearly defined routes and patterns whilst among public services a sponsoring minister or the Minister for Finance may appoint a board or commission. Commercial activities, where the state involves itself, are typically through the state-sponsored bodies which are usually organised in a similar fashion to private companies.

A 2005 report on public sector employment, showed that in June 2005 the numbers employed in the public sector stood at 350,100; of these by sector they were 38,700 (civil service), 254,100 (public service) and 57,300 (state-sponsored). The total workforce of the state was 1,857,400 that year, thus the public sector represents approximately 20% of the total workforce.

Civil service
The civil service of Ireland consists of two broad components, the Civil Service of the Government and the Civil Service of the State. Whilst these two components are largely theoretical, they do have some fundamental operational differences. The civil service is expected to maintain the political impartiality in its work, and some sections of it are entirely independent of Government decision making.

Public service
The public service is a relatively broad term and is not clearly defined and sometimes is taken to include the civil service. The public service proper consists of Government agencies and bodies which provide services on behalf of the Government but are not the core civil service. For instance local authorities, Education and Training Boards and Garda Síochána are considered to be public services.

Local government
Article 28A of the constitution of Ireland provides a constitutional basis for local government. The Oireachtas is empowered to establish the number, size and powers of local authorities by law. Under Article 28A, members of local authorities must be directly elected by voters at least once every five years.

Local government in Ireland is governed by a series of Local Government Acts, beginning with the Local Government (Ireland) Act 1898. The most significant of these is the Local Government Act 2001, which established a two-tier structure of local government. The Local Government Reform Act 2014 abolished the bottom tier, the town councils, leaving 31 local authorities. There are 26 County Councils (County Dublin having been divided into three council areas), 3 City Councils (Dublin, Cork and Galway), and 2 City and County Councils (Limerick and Waterford).

Political parties
A number of political parties are represented in the Dáil and coalition governments are common. The Irish electoral system has been historically characterised as a two-and-a-half party system, with two large catch-all parties, this being the centre-right Fine Gael and the centrist Fianna Fáil, dominating, and the "half-party", being Labour. This changed after the 2011 general election, following the large drop in support for Fianna Fáil and the rise in support for other parties. Ireland's political landscape changed dramatically after the 2020 general election, when Sinn Féin made gains to become the joint-largest party in the Dáil, making Ireland a three party system.

Fianna Fáil, a traditionally Irish republican party founded in 1927 by Éamon de Valera, is the joint-largest party in the Dáil and considered centrist in Irish politics. It first formed a government on the basis of a populist programme of land redistribution and national preference in trade and republican populism remains a key part of its appeal. It has formed government seven times since Ireland gained independence: 1932–1948, 1951–1954, 1957–1973, 1977–1981, 1982, 1987–1994, and 1997–2011. Fianna Fáil was the largest party in the Dáil from 1932 to 2011. It lost a huge amount of support in the 2011 general election, going from 71 to 20 seats, its lowest ever. Its loss in support was mainly due to its handling of the 2008 economic recession. It has since regained some support, but is yet to recover to its pre-2011 levels.

The other joint-largest party is Sinn Féin, established in its current form in 1970 as a breakaway faction from the original political party of the same name (the remaining part has had several changes of name since, and is now known as the Workers' Party). The original Sinn Féin party played a major role in the Irish War of Independence and the First Dáil, and both Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil trace their origins to this party, having split from it in 1922 and 1926, respectively. The current-day party split from this older Sinn Féin in a dispute over political ideology and a perceived lack of support for the so-called “armed struggle” against British rule in Northern Ireland, and as a result the newer party has been historically linked to the Provisional IRA. The party is a Republican party which takes a strongly left wing stance on economics and social policy, placing it to the left of the Labour party. Sinn Féin received the highest share of first-preference votes in the 2020 general election, but finished level with Fianna Fáil in overall seats once vote transfers had been counted.

The third-largest party in the Dáil is Fine Gael, which has its origins in the pro-Treaty faction of Michael Collins in the Irish Civil War. Traditionally regarded as the party of law and order, it is associated with strong belief in pro-enterprise and reward. Despite expressions of Social Democracy by previous leader Garret FitzGerald, today, it remains a Christian democratic, economically liberal party along European lines, with a strongly pro-European outlook. Fine Gael was formed in 1933 out of a merger of Cumann na nGaedheal (which had split from the original Sinn Féin in 1922), the National Centre Party and the paramilitary Blueshirts organisation. In more recent years it has generally been associated with a liberal, progressive, outlook. Fine Gael has formed governments in the periods 1922–1932 (as Cumann na nGaedheal), 1948–1951, 1954–1957, 1973–1977, 1981–1982, 1982–1987, 1994–1997, and from 2011 to present. In the 2011 general election, Fine Gael won 78 seats, its highest ever total, and a massive increase from the previous election.

The fourth-largest party in the Dáil is the Green Party, which made significant gains at the 2020 general election.

The fifth largest party in the Dáil is the centre-left Labour Party which was founded by James Connolly and Jim Larkin in 1912. Labour has formal links with the trade union movement and has governed in seven coalition governments – six led by Fine Gael and one by Fianna Fáil. This recurring role as a junior coalition partner has led to Labour being classed as the "half" party in Ireland's "two-and-a-half party system". Labour won a record number of seats, 37, at the 2011 general election, becoming the second-largest party for the first time in its history, following the collapse in support for Fianna Fáil. In 2011, Labour went into coalition with Fine Gael, who had also won a record number of seats. Labour retained its place as one of Ireland's three largest parties up until the 2016 general election, when it suffered the worst general election defeat in its history, gaining just 7 seats. Much of this was due to being part of a government that had introduced unpopular austerity measures to deal with the economic crisis.

The sixth-largest Dáil party is the centre-left Social Democrats. The Social Democrats were founded in 2015 and made gains at the 2020 general election.

The People Before Profit–Solidarity electoral alliance, consisting of People Before Profit and Solidarity, is the 7th-largest party grouping within Dáil Éireann. Formed in 2015, the group represents a left-wing, socialist viewpoint.

Aontú, a party formed in 2019 by politicians who left Sinn Féin, has one TD, as does Right to Change, a left-wing, socialist political party formed after the 2020 election.

Nineteen of the 160 TDs in the 33rd Dáil are Independent.

Foreign relations
Ireland's foreign relations are substantially influenced by its membership of the European Union, although bilateral relations with the United States and United Kingdom are also important to the country. It is one of the group of smaller nations in the EU, and has traditionally followed a non-aligned foreign policy.

Military neutrality
Ireland tends towards independence in foreign policy, thus it is not a member of NATO and has a longstanding policy of military neutrality.

This policy has helped the Irish Defence Forces to be successful in their contributions to UN peace-keeping missions since 1960 (in the Congo Crisis ONUC) and subsequently in Cyprus (UNFICYP), Lebanon (UNIFIL), Iran/Iraq Border (UNIIMOG), Bosnia and Herzegovina (SFOR & EUFOR Althea), Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE), Liberia (UNMIL), East Timor (INTERFET), Darfur and Chad (EUFOR Tchad/RCA).

Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland has been a major factor in Irish politics since the island of Ireland was divided between Northern Ireland and what is now the Republic in 1920. The creation of Northern Ireland led to conflict between northern nationalists (mostly Roman Catholic) who seek unification with the Republic and Unionists (mostly Protestant) who opposed British plans for Irish Home Rule and wished for Northern Ireland to remain within the United Kingdom. After the formation of Northern Ireland in 1921 following its opt out from the newly formed Irish Free State, many Roman Catholics and Republicans were discriminated against. The abolition of Proportional Representation and the gerrymandering of constituency boundaries led to Unionists being over-represented at Stormont and at Westminster. Even James Craig who was prime minister of Northern Ireland boasted of his Protestant Parliament for a Protestant People. In the 1960s NICRA was set up to end discrimination between Catholics and Protestants. There was a massive backlash to this from sections of the Unionist community. This conflict exploded into violence in the late sixties with the beginning of the Troubles, involving groups such as the Provisional IRA, loyalist paramilitaries, the police and the British army, the latter originally drafted in to protect Catholic communities from loyalist violence. These clashes were to result in the suspension of the Stormont Parliament and unsuccessful efforts by the British Government to encourage a power-sharing Executive in Northern Ireland which were only realised following the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. The Troubles caused thousands of deaths in Northern Ireland but also spilled over into bombings and acts of violence in England and the Republic.

Since its foundation it has been the stated long-term policy of governments of what is now the Republic to bring an end to the conflict in Northern Ireland and to bring about a united Ireland. Northern Ireland has also, in the past, often been a source of tension between the Irish Government and the government of the United Kingdom. To find a solution to the Troubles the Irish Government became a partner in the Good Friday Agreement in 1998.

While Sinn Féin have long organised in both Northern Ireland and the Republic, Fianna Fáil have recently opened a cumann (branch) in Derry and begun recruiting members at Queen's University, Belfast although both are extremely small.

North/South Ministerial Council
Under the Good Friday Agreement and Article 3 of the Constitution a North-South Ministerial Council and six North-South Implementation Bodies co-ordinate activities and exercise a limited governmental role within certain policy areas across the whole island of Ireland. The Implementation Bodies have limited executive authority in six policy areas. Meetings of the Council take the form of meetings between ministers from both the Republic's Government and the Northern Ireland Executive. The council was suspended from 2002 to 2007. However, with the resumption of devolved government in Northern Ireland in May 2007, the council has now re-assumed its duties.

title: Politics of the Republic of Ireland


text:
Telecommunications in the Republic of Ireland

Telecommunications in Ireland operate in a regulated competitive market that provides customers with a wide array of advanced digital services. This article explores Ireland's telecommunications infrastructure including: fixed and mobile networks, The voice, data and Internet services, cable television, developments in next-generation networks and broadcast networks for radio and television.

Regulation
Telecommunications, including radio frequency spectrum licensing and the postal sector, are regulated by the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg). ComReg was established on 1 December 2002. The Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) (Údarás Craolacháin na hÉireann) is the regulator of both public and commercial broadcasting sector in Ireland. It was established on 1 October 2009, replacing the Broadcasting Commission of Ireland (BCI) (Coimisiún Craolacháin na hÉireann).

The Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment has overall responsibility for national policy and regulation of both telecommunications and broadcasting.

The telecommunications market in Ireland was opened to competition in 1998.

Eir's dominance has reduced and by Q3 2019 operators other than eir accounted for 61% of the Irish fixed voice market retail revenue and 54.7% market share by fixed-line retail and wholesale revenue and 80.9% of the mobile market (excluding mobile broadband and machine-to-machine subscriptions) or 84.4% of total subscriptions. Other operators accounted for 68.6% of retail fixed broadband subscriptions (comprising cable, FTTH, FTTC/VDSL and ADSL) and 57.3% of retail FTTP subscriptions

Eir remains the largest telecommunications company in Ireland, offering fixed, mobile, and broadband services. As Bord Telecom Éireann, the company was state owned until 1999, when it was floated on the Irish and New York Stock Exchanges.

Infrastructure
Ireland's telecommunications network is a modern digital system connected by an extensive national fibre optic network with multiple high-capacity fibre optic links to the UK, Continental Europe, North America and with dedicated capacity on routes to Asia and other parts of the globe. There is an open and competitive telecommunications market regulated by ComReg. However, the fixed-line market is still dominated by the incumbent operator Eir.

Several companies operate national fibre optic networks including Eir, BT Ireland, ESB Group and Virgin Media Ireland. Eir's fibre network is the most extensive covering most parts of the country with 12,000 km of fibre routes (>40,000 km of fibres)

Eir's Next Generation Network upgrade rolled out dense wavelength-division multiplexing (DWDM) which is capable of delivering up to 320 Gbit/s along a single fibre route. This upgrade also sees Eir's core infrastructure moving to an all-IP network. It has major aggregation nodes at 140 locations around Ireland and onward fibre connections to another 470 central office sites.

Ireland also has major connections to multiple international fibre optic networks.

94 Irish towns and cities also have access to publicly owned, carrier-neutral metropolitan fibre networks managed by Enet.

These networks can be used by any licensed Irish telecommunications operator to provide commercial or residential end users with products.

For residential and small business providers, most major urban areas have access to Virgin Media Ireland's HFC network which provides speeds of up to 1 Gbit/s using EuroDOCSIS 3.1 cable modem technology.

Open Eir is also in the process of rolling out FTTH which provides speeds of up to 1 Gbit/s down and 100 Mbit/s up. They also provide an extensive vectored VDSL2 based FTTC access network, using the legacy copper network. This offers speeds of up to 100 Mbit/s down and 20 Mbit/s up.

Retail services using this next-generation access infrastructure are provided by approximately 15 operators.

SIRO, a joint venture between ESB Group and Vodafone Ireland, provides another open access fibre to home network, used by multiple ISPs to deliver service. Fibre is run alongside ESB Networks 230 V/400 V LV electricity distribution system, sharing underground ducts and poles, with fibre typically entering premises next to the electricity meter. This, similar to Eir's FTTH network, delivers speeds of up to 1 Gbit/s and is capable of delivery of 10 Gbit/s in the future.

Ireland has three mobile networks that own and operate their own network infrastructure and a number of MVNO operators that operate mobile phone services using one of these infrastructure providers' radio networks. The three infrastructure owning networks are Eir Mobile, Three, and Vodafone.

Meteor and Eir Mobile were the first to launch 4G LTE services in Ireland on 26 September 2013, followed by Vodafone on 14 October 2013, and Three on 27 January 2014. O2 was due to launch its 4G services later in 2014, but plans were put on hold when its acquisition by Three was approved in May, and from the time of the merger in 2015, previous O2 customers gained 4G coverage through Three's network, albeit with initial service problems.

In 2016, 41.9% of Ireland's mobile subscriptions were using 4G technology. 3G remained the dominant technology with 44.6% share, however, it is likely to be overtaken by 4G in 2017.

Telephone system

 * Fixed telephone lines in use 1,168,591 (Q3 2020, ComReg)
 * Mobile cellular telephones: 5,182,682 (Q3 2020, ComReg)
 * Country code: 353

As mobile phone services become more price competitive, more Irish customers are opting to drop landline services. This is reflected by a sharp fall in the number of fixed line channels in use and an equivalent increase in mobile subscriptions. Details are tracked on ComReg's ComStat website

There are three mobile telecommunications providers: Three Ireland, Eir Mobile and Vodafone Ireland.

There are also some MNVOs (Mobile Network Virtual Operators), such as: 48, GoMo, Lycamobile, An Post Mobile, Tesco Mobile, Virgin Mobile and Clear Mobile.

History
The original network was taken over by the Irish Department of Posts and Telegraphs (P&T) from the British Post Office in 1921 and used a mixture of manual and step-by-step automatic exchanges. Development of the network was relatively stagnant with slow rollout of automatic switching using step-by-step exchanges until after WWII. From 1957 onwards, P&T began to roll out more modern crossbar switches primarily using equipment supplied by Ericsson built at their Athlone facility. ITT Pentaconta crossbar switches, built by CGCT (Compagnie générale de constructions téléphoniques) were also used in some areas. This saw significant improvements to many services, but the network was still quite underdeveloped in rural areas.

Digital switching was introduced in 1980 using Ericsson AXE and Alcatel E10 switches both of which were manufactured at facilities in Ireland. This saw a total transformation of the telephone network with modern automatic and digital services reaching even the most rural parts of Ireland by the mid-1980s.

The fixed-line network is now made up of multiple operators using a diverse range of digital technologies including VoIP.

Ireland's first mobile telephone network, Eircell, went live in 1986 using the analogue TACS system. 2G GSM services from Eircell launched on 1 July 1993. Digifone followed in 1997, then Meteor in 2001 (having been licensed in 1998) and 3 Ireland launched its UMTS 3G-only service in 2005.

3G services launched in 2004 (Vodafone Ireland) and other networks quickly followed suit, and 4G launched in 2013 (Meteor) and is now available on most networks. Meteor was bought out by Eir in 2005 and eventually rebranded as Eir in 2017.

Internet

 * Internet users: 3.6 million, 77% of the population, 70th in the world (2011); 3.0 million, 67th in the world (2009)
 * Dial-up subscriptions: 11,437 (Q4 2012 ComStat)
 * Fixed broadband subscriptions: 1,506,832 (Q3 2020, ComReg)
 * Mobile broadband subscriptions: 323,530 (Q3 2020, ComReg)
 * Internet hosts: 1.4 million, 40th in the world (2012)
 * Internet censorship: None (2011)
 * Top-level domain name: .ie

Broadband Internet access is available in Ireland via DSL, cable, wireless, and satellite. By the end of 2011 Eircom announced that 75% of its working lines would be connected to Next Generation Broadband (NGB) enabled exchanges.

Currently available services (Q3 2014)
 * ADSL - up to 24 Mbit/s - (several providers and unbundled services are available.)
 * FTTC - VDSL up to 100 Mbit/s down 20 Mbit/s up (several providers - vectoring technology is used)
 * Cable - Speeds of up to 360 Mbit/s - Main provider Virgin Media Ireland
 * Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) - various technologies in use - mostly used in rural areas.
 * Mobile broadband - UMTS (3G) and LTE (4G) services are available from several providers.

A typical monthly broadband Internet subscription cost $26.02 in 2011, 14% less than the average of $30.16 for the 34 Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries surveyed.

In August 2012 Pat Rabbitte, the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources, outlined a national broadband plan with goals of:
 * 70 to 100 Mbit/s broadband service available to at least 50 per cent of the population,
 * at least 40 Mbit/s available to at least a further 20 per cent, and
 * a minimum of 30 Mbit/s available to everyone, no matter how rural or remote.

Founded in 1996, the Internet Neutral Exchange (INEX) is an industry-owned association that provides IP peering and traffic exchange for its members in Ireland. The INEX switching centres are located in five secure data centres in Dublin and one in Cork: TeleCity Group in Kilcarbery Park, Dublin 22 & TeleCity Group in Citywest Business Campus, Dublin 24 and Interxion DUB1, and Interxion DUB2 in Park West, and Vodafone Clonshaugh as well as at CIX, Hollyhill, Cork T23 R68N. The switches are connected by dedicated resilient fibre links. In June 2015 it listed 74 full and 21 associate members.

Established in 1998, the Internet Service Providers Association of Ireland (ISPAI) listed 24 Internet access and hosting providers as members in 2012.

Infrastructure
Television in Ireland is broadcast using DVB-T using the common platform specifications defined by NorDig which apply in the Nordic countries and Ireland. Video is encoded using the MPEG4 system. The analogue PAL-I broadcasting system is no longer on air.

Cable systems operate using the DVB-C standard and Satellite is broadcast using DVB-S/S2. Some areas still carry a range of cable channels in analogue PAL-I format. Although, this is normally just a legacy service provided by default. It is not possible to subscribe to analogue cable as a new customer.

Radio is broadcast primarily using FM 88-108 MHz. Digital DAB Radio is also available in some areas. RTÉ Radio 1 is also broadcast on Longwave 252 kHz (AM) Mediumwave services have been discontinued.

2RN operates a national FM network and DAB services. However, most independent FM stations own their own broadcasting infrastructure.

Raidió Teilifís Éireann (Radio [and] Television of Ireland; abbreviated as RTÉ) is a statutory semi-state company and the public service broadcaster that dominates the radio and TV sectors in Ireland. The first commercial radio stations began broadcasting in 1989. Prior to 1989 hundreds of pirate radio stations were a mainstay of radio listener-ship, particularly in Dublin, and a handful of pirate stations continue to operate illegally today. In 1998 TV3 became the first privately owned commercial TV station and it remains the main free-to-air service after RTÉ. Competition also comes from British public and private terrestrial TV. Satellite and cable TV are widely available. There are also non-commercial community and special interest radio stations.

RTÉ both produces programmes and broadcasts them on television, radio and the Internet in English and Irish. The radio service began on 1 January 1926, while regular television broadcasts began on 31 December 1961, making RTÉ one of the oldest continuously operating public service broadcasters in the world. Some RTÉ services are only funded by advertising, while other RTÉ services are only funded by the television licence fee.

Saorview is Ireland's national free-to-air digital terrestrial television (DTT) service operated by 2RN. Trial service began on 29 October 2010 with full service to the public from May 2011. Analogue television transmissions ended on 24 October 2012.

SAORSAT is Ireland's national free-to-air digital satellite television service, also operated by 2RN. SAORSAT delivers Irish television services to the 1% to 2% of homes that are not covered by the SAORVIEW Digital Terrestrial Television service.

A television licence is required for any address at which there is a television set or device that is not exempt. The annual licence fee is €160. The licence is free to senior citizens (to anyone over the age of 70, some over 66), some social welfare recipients, and individuals who are blind.


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Transport in Ireland

Most of the transport system in Ireland is in public hands, either side of the Irish border. The Irish road network has evolved separately in the two jurisdictions into which Ireland is divided, while the Irish rail network was mostly created prior to the partition of Ireland.

In the Republic of Ireland, the Minister for Transport, acting through the Department of Transport, is responsible for the state's road network, rail network, public transport, airports and several other areas. Although some sections of road have been built using private or public-private funds, and are operated as toll roads, they are owned by the Government of Ireland. The rail network is also state-owned and operated, while the government currently still owns the main airports. Public transport is mainly in the hands of a statutory corporation, Córas Iompair Éireann (CIÉ), and its subsidiaries, Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann (Irish Bus), and Iarnród Éireann (Irish Rail).

On 1 November 2005, the Irish government published the Transport 21 plan which includes €18bn for improved roads and €16bn for improved rail, including the Western Railway Corridor and the Dublin Metro.

The Republic of Ireland's transport sector is responsible for 21% of the state's greenhouse gas emissions.

In Northern Ireland, the road network and railways are in state ownership. The Department for Infrastructure is responsible for these and other areas (such as water services). Two of the three main airports in Northern Ireland are privately operated and owned. The exception is City of Derry Airport, which is owned and funded by Derry City Council. A statutory corporation, the Northern Ireland Transport Holding Company (which trades as Translink) operates public transport services through its three subsidiaries – NI Railways Company Limited, Ulsterbus Limited, and Citybus Limited (now branded as Metro).

Railways

 * Total                                            Ireland rail network sb.svg
 * broad gauge
 * 1947 km (1998); 38 km electrified; 485 km double track; some additions and removals since 1997

 * standard gauge
 * 36.5 km (2004) (Luas tramway); 36.5 km electrified; 36.5 km double track; additional track under construction

 * narrow gauge
 * 1365 km (2006) (industrial railway operated by Bord na Móna)

Ireland's railways are in State ownership, with Iarnród Éireann (Irish Rail) operating services in the Republic and NI Railways operating services in Northern Ireland. The two companies co-operate in providing the joint Enterprise service between Dublin and Belfast. InterCity services are provided between Dublin and the major towns and cities of the Republic, and in Ulster along the Belfast–Derry railway line. Suburban railway networks operate in Dublin, Dublin Suburban Rail, and Belfast, Belfast Suburban Rail, with limited local services being offered in, or planned for, Cork, Limerick, and Galway.

The rail network in Ireland was developed by various private companies during the 19th century, with some receiving government funding. The network reached its greatest extent by 1920. A broad gauge of 1600mm (5 ft 3in) was agreed as the standard for the island, although there were also hundreds of kilometres of 914mm (3 ft) narrow gauge railways.

Many lines in the west were decommissioned in the 1930s under Éamon de Valera, with a further large cull in services by both CIÉ and the Ulster Transport Authority (UTA) during the 1960s, leaving few working lines in the northern third of the island. There is a campaign to bring some closed lines back into service, in particular the Limerick-Sligo line (the Western Railway Corridor), to facilitate economic regeneration in the west, which has lagged behind the rest of the country. There is also a move to restore service on the Dublin to Navan line, and smaller campaigns to re-establish the rail links between Sligo and Enniskillen/Omagh/Derry and Mullingar and Athlone/Galway. Under the Irish government's Transport 21 plan, the Cork to Midleton rail link was reopened in 2009. The re-opening of the Navan-Clonsilla rail link and the Western Rail Corridor are amongst future projects as part of the same plan.

Public transport services in Northern Ireland are sparse in comparison with those of the rest of Ireland or Great Britain. A large railway network was severely curtailed in the 1950s and 1960s. Current services includes suburban routes to Larne, Newry and Bangor, as well as services to Derry. There is also a branch from Coleraine to Portrush.

Since 1984 an electrified train service run by Iarnród Éireann has linked Dublin with its coastal suburbs. Running initially between Bray and Howth, the Dublin Area Rapid Transit (DART) system was extended from Bray to Greystones in 2000 and further extended from Howth Junction to Malahide. In 2004 a light rail system, Luas, was opened in Dublin serving the central and western suburbs, run by Veolia under franchise from the Railway Procurement Agency. The construction of the Luas system caused much disruption in Dublin. Plans to construct a Dublin Metro service including underground lines were mooted in 2001, but stalled in the financial crisis at the end of that decade.

Ireland has one of the largest dedicated freight railways in Europe, operated by Bord na Móna totalling nearly 1400 km.

Roads and cars in Ireland

 * Total – 117318 km
 * South: 92500 km including 1015 km of motorway (2010)
 * North: 24818 km including 148 km of motorway (2008)
 * paved – 87043 km, unpaved – 5457 km

Ireland's roads link Dublin with all the major cities (Belfast, Cork, Limerick, Derry, Galway, and Waterford). Driving is on the left. Signposts in the Republic of Ireland are shown in kilometres and speed limits in kilometres per hour. Distance and speed limit signs in Northern Ireland use imperial units in common with the rest of the United Kingdom.

Historically, land owners developed most roads and later turnpike trusts collected tolls so that as early as 1800 Ireland had a 16100 km road network. In 2005 the Irish Government launched Transport 21, a plan envisaging the investment of €34 billion in transport infrastructure from 2006 until 2015. Several road projects were progressed but the economic crisis that began in 2008–09 has prevented its full implementation.

Between 2011 and 2015, diesel cars constituted 70% of new cars. In 2015, 27 new cars per 1,000 inhabitants were registered in Ireland, the same as the EU average.

Bus services
Ireland's first mail coach services were contracted with the government by John Anderson with William Bourne in 1791 who also paid to improve the condition of the roads. The system of mail coaches, carriages and "bians" was further developed by Charles Bianconi, based in Clonmel, from 1815 as a fore-runner of the modern Irish public transportation system. State-owned Bus Éireann (Irish Bus) currently provides most bus services in the Republic of Ireland, outside Dublin, including an express coach network connecting most cities in Ireland, along with local bus services in the provincial cities. Dublin Bus, a sister company of Bus Éireann, provides most of the bus services in Dublin, with some other operators providing a number of routes. These include Aircoach, a subsidiary of FirstGroup which provides services to Dublin Airport from Dublin city centre, South Dublin City, Greystones and Bray. They also operate two intercity express non-stop services service between Dublin Airport, Dublin City Centre, and Cork and also a non-stop route between Belfast City Centre, Dublin Airport and Dublin City. Other operators such as Irish Citylink and GoBus.ie compete on the Dublin-Galway route. Matthews Coaches run a direct service from Bettystown, Laytown and Julianstown to Dublin whilst Dublin Coach operate services to Portlaoise and Limerick. JJ Kavanagh and Sons also operates regular services on the Portlaoise/Limerick route as well as offering services to Waterford, Carlow, Kilkenny, Clonmel and a selection of regional towns and villages in the south.

TFI Local Link is a set of not-for-profit operators, funded via the National Transport Authority, that provide bus services in rural Ireland. Other private rural operators exist, such as Halpenny's in Blackrock, County Louth, which was the first private bus operator to run a public service in Ireland, Bus Feda (Feda O'Donnell Coaches), which operates twice daily routes from Ranafast, County Donegal to Galway and back.

In Northern Ireland Ulsterbus provides the bus network, with its sister company Metro providing services in Belfast. Both are part of state-owned Translink. Tiger Coaches operates a very late night bus service on Friday and Saturday nights between Belfast and Lisburn.

Private hire companies offer groups travelling throughout Ireland with options ranging from cars to 56 passenger coaches. Private Coach Hire Companies can be found at CTTC.ie.

Cross-border services (e.g. Dublin city centre to Belfast) are run primarily by a partnership of Ulsterbus and Bus Éireann with some services run across the border exclusively by one of the two companies (e.g. Derry–Sligo run by Bus Éireann). Aircoach, a private operator, does however operate a competing Dublin to Belfast Express service via Dublin Airport.

According to an Irish Times article in September 2022, 14.3% of national journeys in the Republic of Ireland were undertaken by bus, compared to the European average of 8.8%. However, this may be partly due to the lack of widespread train coverage in the country, as Ireland's figure of 3.1% usage of trains for journeys is well behind the European average of 7.9%.

Waterways

 * Total (2004) – 753 km
 * (pleasure craft only on inland waterways, several lengthy estuarine waterways)

 * Grand Canal (Ireland)
 * Royal Canal
 * Shannon–Erne Waterway
 * River Barrow
 * River Shannon
 * Lower Bann
 * Newry Ship Canal

Pipelines
Natural gas transmission network 1795 km (2003). There is a much more extensive distribution network.

Ports and harbours
Ireland has major ports in Dublin, Belfast, Cork, Rosslare, Derry and Waterford. Smaller ports exist in Arklow, Ballina, Drogheda, Dundalk, Dún Laoghaire, Foynes, Galway, Larne, Limerick, New Ross, Sligo, Warrenpoint and Wicklow.

Ports in the Republic of Ireland handled 2.8 million travellers crossing the sea between Ireland and Great Britain in 2014, a decrease of 1 million passengers movements since 2003. This has been steadily dropping for a number of years (20% since 1999), probably as a result of low cost airlines.

Ferries
Ferry connections between Britain and Ireland via the Irish Sea include the routes from Fishguard and Pembroke to Rosslare, and Cairnryan to Larne. The Stranraer to Belfast and Larne routes and the Swansea to Cork route have closed. There is also a connection between Liverpool and Belfast via the Isle of Man. The world's largest car ferry, Ulysses, is operated by Irish Ferries on the Dublin–Holyhead route.

In addition, there are ferries from Rosslare and Dublin to Cherbourg and Roscoff in France.

The vast majority of heavy goods trade is done by sea. Northern Irish ports handle 10 megatonnes (Mt) of goods trade with Britain annually, while ports in the south handle 7.6 Mt, representing 50% and 40% respectively of total trade by weight.

Mercantile Marine

 * Total – 35 ships (with a volume of or over) totalling /
 * Ships by type – bulk carrier 7, cargo ship 22, chemical tanker 1, container ship 3, roll-on/roll-off ship 1, short-sea passenger 1
 * Foreign-owned – Germany 3, Italy 7, Norway 2
 * Registered in other countries – 18 (2003 est.)

Aviation

Ireland has four main international airports: Dublin Airport, Cork Airport, Shannon Airport and Ireland West Airport (Knock). Dublin Airport is the busiest of these carrying almost 35 million passengers per year; a second terminal (T2) was opened in November 2010. All provide services to Great Britain and continental Europe, while Cork, Dublin and Shannon also offer transatlantic services. The London to Dublin air route is the ninth busiest international air route in the world, and also the busiest international air route in Europe, with 14,500 flights between the two in 2017. In 2015, 4.5 million people took the route, at that time, the world's second-busiest. Aer Lingus is the flag carrier of Ireland, although Ryanair is the country's largest airline. Ryanair is Europe's largest low-cost carrier, the second largest in terms of passenger numbers, and the world's largest in terms of international passenger numbers. For several decades until 2007 Shannon was a mandatory stopover for transatlantic routes to the United States. In recent years it has opened a pre-screening service allowing passengers to pass through US immigration services before departing from Ireland.

There are also several smaller regional airports: George Best Belfast City Airport, City of Derry Airport, Galway Airport, Kerry Airport (Farranfore), Sligo Airport (Strandhill), Waterford Airport and Donegal Airport (Carrickfinn). Scheduled services from these regional points are in the main limited to flights travelling to other parts of Ireland and to Great Britain. Airlines based in Ireland include Aer Lingus (the former national airline of the Republic of Ireland), Ryanair, Aer Arann and CityJet. Services to the Aran Islands are operated from Aerfort na Minna (Connemara Regional Airport).

Ireland's national airline, Aer Lingus, provides services from Belfast City, Cork, Dublin and Shannon to Europe, North Africa and North America. Dublin and Cork airports are run by a State body, DAA (Dublin Airport Authority). Other Irish airlines are Ryanair, one of the largest in the world, CityJet, ASL Airlines Ireland and the Aer Lingus subsidiary Aer Lingus Regional. A number of other operators specialise in general aviation.

Airport passenger numbers
For 2018 the passenger numbers were as follows:

Gateway Irish Urban Reference Destination Distances

 * Midlands Gateway Urban Destination Distances
 * The distances given below are in kilometres as travelling through the Midlands Gateway ATM (Athlone-Tullamore-Mullingar).
 * Where it is logical to travel along the east or west coast directly, these distances are provided according to the popular route.
 * Urban by-passes, Rockades, Diversions, Detours and all other dispositives prolonging the travelled distances between destinations are equated to ZERO.
 * This is an estimation distance guide only.

title: Transport in Ireland