l bands of green (hoist side),
white, and orange; similar to the flag of Cote d'Ivoire, which is shorter
and has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green;
also similar to the flag of Italy, which is shorter and has colors of
green (hoist side), white, and red

Economy Ireland

Economy - overview: Ireland is a small, modern, trade-dependent economy
with growth averaging a robust 9% in 1995-2001. Agriculture, once the
most important sector, is now dwarfed by industry, which accounts
for 38% of GDP, about 80% of exports, and employs 28% of the labor
force. Although exports remain the primary engine for Ireland's robust
growth, the economy is also benefiting from a rise in consumer spending
and recovery in both construction and business investment. Over the past
decade, the Irish government has implemented a series of national economic
programs designed to curb inflation, reduce government spending, increase
labor force skills, and promote foreign investment. Ireland joined in
launching the euro currency system in January 1999 along with 10 other
EU nations. The economy felt the impact of the global economic slowdown
in 2001, particularly in the high-tech export sector; the growth rate was
cut by nearly half. Growth in 2002 is expected to fall in the 3%-5% range.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $104.7 billion (2001 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: 5.6% (2001 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $27,300 (2001 est.)

GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 4% industry: 38% services: 58%
(2000)

Population below poverty line: 10% (1997 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 27.3% (1997)

Distribution of family income - Gini index: 35.9 (1987)

Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.9% (2001)

Labor force: 1.8 million (2001)

Labor force - by occupation: services 64%, industry 28%, agriculture 8%
(2000 est.)

Unemployment rate: 4.3% (2001)

Budget: revenues: $34 billion expenditures: $27 billion, including
capital expenditures of $NA (2001)

Industries: food products, brewing, textiles, clothing; chemicals,
pharmaceuticals, machinery, transportation equipment, glass and crystal;
software

Industrial production growth rate: 6.5% (2001 est.)

Electricity - production: 22.285 billion kWh (2000)

Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 94.86% hydro: 3.77%
other: 1.37% (2000) nuclear: 0%

Electricity - c