Ireland (2006) | Swaziland (2006) | |
Administrative divisions | 26 counties; Carlow, Cavan, Clare, Cork, Donegal, Dublin, Galway, Kerry, Kildare, Kilkenny, Laois, Leitrim, Limerick, Longford, Louth, Mayo, Meath, Monaghan, Offaly, Roscommon, Sligo, Tipperary, Waterford, Westmeath, Wexford, Wicklow
note: Cavan, Donegal, and Monaghan are part of Ulster Province |
4 districts; Hhohho, Lubombo, Manzini, Shiselweni |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 20.9% (male 437,903/female 409,774)
15-64 years: 67.6% (male 1,373,771/female 1,370,452) 65 years and over: 11.6% (male 207,859/female 262,476) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years: 40.7% (male 233,169/female 229,103)
15-64 years: 55.8% (male 303,260/female 330,460) 65 years and over: 3.6% (male 16,071/female 24,271) (2006 est.) |
Agriculture - products | turnips, barley, potatoes, sugar beets, wheat; beef, dairy products | sugarcane, cotton, corn, tobacco, rice, citrus, pineapples, sorghum, peanuts; cattle, goats, sheep |
Airports | 36 (2006) | 18 (2006) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 15
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 6 (2006) |
total: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 (2006) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 21
914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 17 (2006) |
total: 17
914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 10 (2006) |
Area | total: 70,280 sq km
land: 68,890 sq km water: 1,390 sq km |
total: 17,363 sq km
land: 17,203 sq km water: 160 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | slightly smaller than New Jersey |
Background | Celtic tribes arrived on the island between 600-150 B.C. Invasions by Norsemen that began in the late 8th century were finally ended when King Brian BORU defeated the Danes in 1014. English invasions began in the 12th century and set off more than seven centuries of Anglo-Irish struggle marked by fierce rebellions and harsh repressions. A failed 1916 Easter Monday Rebellion touched off several years of guerrilla warfare that in 1921 resulted in independence from the UK for 26 southern counties; six northern (Ulster) counties remained part of the UK. In 1948 Ireland withdrew from the British Commonwealth; it joined the European Community in 1973. Irish governments have sought the peaceful unification of Ireland and have cooperated with Britain against terrorist groups. A peace settlement for Northern Ireland, known as the Good Friday Agreement and approved in 1998, is being implemented with some difficulties. | Autonomy for the Swazis of southern Africa was guaranteed by the British in the late 19th century; independence was granted in 1968. Student and labor unrest during the 1990s pressured the monarchy (one of the oldest on the continent) to grudgingly allow political reform and greater democracy. Swaziland recently surpassed Botswana as the country with the world's highest known rates of HIV/AIDS infection. |
Birth rate | 14.45 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 27.41 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $70.46 billion
expenditures: $69.4 billion; including capital expenditures of $5.5 billion (2005 est.) |
revenues: $805.6 million
expenditures: $957.1 million; including capital expenditures of $147 million (2005 est.) |
Capital | name: Dublin
geographic coordinates: 53 20 N, 6 15 W time difference: UTC 0 (5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October |
name: Mbabane
geographic coordinates: 26 18 S, 31 06 E time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) note: Lobamba (royal and legislative capital) |
Climate | temperate maritime; modified by North Atlantic Current; mild winters, cool summers; consistently humid; overcast about half the time | varies from tropical to near temperate |
Coastline | 1,448 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
Constitution | adopted 1 July 1937 by plebiscite; effective 29 December 1937 | the first constitution was signed into law in July 2005 and is scheduled to be implemented in January 2006 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Ireland local long form: none local short form: Eire |
conventional long form: Kingdom of Swaziland
conventional short form: Swaziland local long form: Umbuso weSwatini local short form: eSwatini |
Death rate | 7.82 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 29.74 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Debt - external | $1.049 trillion (30 June 2005) | $357 million (2003 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Thomas C. FOLEY
embassy: 42 Elgin Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4 mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [353] (1) 668-8777 FAX: [353] (1) 668-9946 |
chief of mission: Ambassador Lewis LUCKE
embassy: Central Bank Building, Mahlokahla Street, Mbabane mailing address: P. O. Box 199, Mbabane telephone: [268] 404-6441 through 404-6445 FAX: [268] 404-5959 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Noel FAHEY
chancery: 2234 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 462-3939 FAX: [1] (202) 232-5993 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, New York, San Francisco |
chief of mission: Ambassador Ephraim Mandla HLOPHE
chancery: 1712 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5002 FAX: [1] (202) 234-8254 |
Disputes - international | Ireland, Iceland, and the UK dispute Denmark's claim that the Faroe Islands' continental shelf extends beyond 200 nm | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $607 million (2004) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | $104 million (2001) |
Economy - overview | Ireland is a small, modern, trade-dependent economy with growth averaging a robust 7% in 1995-2004. Agriculture, once the most important sector, is now dwarfed by industry and services. Industry accounts for 46% of GDP, about 80% of exports, and 29% of the labor force. Although exports remain the primary engine for Ireland's growth, the economy has also benefited from a rise in consumer spending, construction, and business investment. Per capita GDP is 10% above that of the four big European economies and the second highest in the EU behind Luxembourg. Over the past decade, the Irish Government has implemented a series of national economic programs designed to curb price and wage inflation, reduce government spending, increase labor force skills, and promote foreign investment. Ireland joined in circulating the euro on 1 January 2002 along with 11 other EU nations. | In this small, landlocked economy, subsistence agriculture occupies more than 80% of the population. The manufacturing sector has diversified since the mid-1980s. Sugar and wood pulp remain important foreign exchange earners. Mining has declined in importance in recent years with only coal and quarry stone mines remaining active. Surrounded by South Africa, except for a short border with Mozambique, Swaziland is heavily dependent on South Africa from which it receives about nine-tenths of its imports and to which it sends nearly two-thirds of its exports. Customs duties from the Southern African Customs Union and worker remittances from South Africa substantially supplement domestically earned income. The government is trying to improve the atmosphere for foreign investment. Overgrazing, soil depletion, drought, and sometimes floods persist as problems for the future. More than one-fourth of the population needed emergency food aid in 2004-05 because of drought, and nearly two-fifths of the adult population has been infected by HIV/AIDS. |
Electricity - consumption | 22.97 billion kWh (2003) | 1.161 billion kWh (2003) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2003) | 0 kWh (2004) |
Electricity - imports | 1.2 billion kWh (2003) | 821.4 million kWh; note - electricity supplied by South Africa (2004) |
Electricity - production | 23.41 billion kWh (2003) | 392 million kWh (2003) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Carrauntoohil 1,041 m |
lowest point: Great Usutu River 21 m
highest point: Emlembe 1,862 m |
Environment - current issues | water pollution, especially of lakes, from agricultural runoff | limited supplies of potable water; wildlife populations being depleted because of excessive hunting; overgrazing; soil degradation; soil erosion |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Marine Life Conservation |
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea |
Ethnic groups | Celtic, English | African 97%, European 3% |
Exchange rates | euros per US dollar - 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001) | emalangeni per US dollar - 6.3593 (2005), 6.4597 (2004), 7.5648 (2003), 10.5407 (2002), 8.6092 (2001) |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Mary MCALEESE (since 11 November 1997)
head of government: Prime Minister Bertie AHERN (since 26 June 1997) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president with previous nomination by the prime minister and approval of the House of Representatives elections: president elected by popular vote for a seven-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 31 October 1997 (next scheduled for October 2011); note - Mary MCALEESE appointed to a second term when no other candidate qualified for the 2004 presidential election; prime minister (taoiseach) nominated by the House of Representatives and appointed by the president election results: Mary MCALEESE elected president; percent of vote - Mary MCALEESE 44.8%, Mary BANOTTI 29.6% note: government coalition - Fianna Fail and the Progressive Democrats |
chief of state: King MSWATI III (since 25 April 1986)
head of government: Prime Minister Absolom Themba DLAMINI (since 14 November 2003) cabinet: Cabinet recommended by the prime minister and confirmed by the monarch elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; prime minister appointed by the monarch |
Exports | 27,450 bbl/day (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Exports - commodities | machinery and equipment, computers, chemicals, pharmaceuticals; live animals, animal products | soft drink concentrates, sugar, wood pulp, cotton yarn, refrigerators, citrus and canned fruit |
Exports - partners | US 18.7%, UK 17.4%, Belgium 15.2%, Germany 7.4%, France 6.4%, Netherlands 4.8% (2005) | South Africa 59.7%, EU 8.8%, US 8.8%, Mozambique 6.2% (2004) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 April - 31 March |
Flag description | three equal vertical 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 | three horizontal bands of blue (top), red (triple width), and blue; the red band is edged in yellow; centered in the red band is a large black and white shield covering two spears and a staff decorated with feather tassels, all placed horizontally |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 5%
industry: 46% services: 49% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: 11.9%
industry: 51.5% services: 36.6% (2005 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 5.5% (2005 est.) | 1.8% (2005 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 53 00 N, 8 00 W | 26 30 S, 31 30 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on major air and sea routes between North America and northern Europe; over 40% of the population resides within 100 km of Dublin | landlocked; almost completely surrounded by South Africa |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 2%
highest 10%: 27.3% (1997) |
lowest 10%: 1%
highest 10%: 50.2% (1995) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for and consumer of hashish from North Africa to the UK and Netherlands and of European-produced synthetic drugs; minor transshipment point for heroin and cocaine destined for Western Europe; despite recent legislation, narcotics-related money laundering - using bureaux de change, trusts, and shell companies involving the offshore financial community - remains a concern | - |
Imports | 178,600 bbl/day (2001) | NA bbl/day |
Imports - commodities | data processing equipment, other machinery and equipment, chemicals, petroleum and petroleum products, textiles, clothing | motor vehicles, machinery, transport equipment, foodstuffs, petroleum products, chemicals |
Imports - partners | UK 37%, US 13.8%, Germany 9.2%, Netherlands 4.5% (2005) | South Africa 95.6%, EU 0.9%, Japan 0.9%, Singapore 0.3% (2004) |
Independence | 6 December 1921 (from UK by treaty) | 6 September 1968 (from UK) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3% (2005 est.) | 3.7% (FY95/96) |
Industries | steel, lead, zinc, silver, aluminum, barite, and gypsum mining processing; food products, brewing, textiles, clothing; chemicals, pharmaceuticals; machinery, rail transportation equipment, passenger and commercial vehicles, ship construction and refurbishment; glass and crystal; software, tourism | mining (coal, raw asbestos), wood pulp, sugar, soft drink concentrates, textile and apparel |
Infant mortality rate | total: 5.31 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 5.82 deaths/1,000 live births female: 4.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
total: 71.85 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 75.25 deaths/1,000 live births female: 68.34 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2.4% (2005 est.) | 4% (2005 est.) |
International organization participation | AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMIL, UNOCI, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (observer), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC | ACP, AfDB, AU, C, COMESA, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, PCA, SACU, SADC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Irrigated land | NA | 500 sq km (2003) |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court (judges appointed by the president on the advice of the prime minister and cabinet) | High Court; Court of Appeal; judges for both courts are appointed by the monarch |
Labor force | 2.03 million (2005 est.) | 155,700 (2003) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 8%
industry: 29% services: 64% (2002 est.) |
agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
Land boundaries | total: 360 km
border countries: UK 360 km |
total: 535 km
border countries: Mozambique 105 km, South Africa 430 km |
Land use | arable land: 16.82%
permanent crops: 0.03% other: 83.15% (2005) |
arable land: 10.25%
permanent crops: 0.81% other: 88.94% (2005) |
Languages | English (official) is the language generally used, Irish (official) (Gaelic or Gaeilge) spoken mainly in areas located along the western seaboard | English (official, government business conducted in English), siSwati (official) |
Legal system | based on English common law, substantially modified by indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in Supreme Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction | based on South African Roman-Dutch law in statutory courts and Swazi traditional law and custom in traditional courts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
Legislative branch | bicameral Parliament or Oireachtas consists of the Senate or Seanad Eireann (60 seats - 49 elected by the universities and from candidates put forward by five vocational panels, 11 are nominated by the prime minister; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Representatives or Dail Eireann (166 seats; members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve five-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 16 and 17 July 2002 (next to be held by July 2007); House of Representatives - last held 17 May 2002 (next to be held by May 2007) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Fianna Fail 30, Fine Gael 15, Labor Party 5, Progressive Democrats 4, independents and other 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - Fianna Fail 41.5%, Fine Gael 22.5%, Labor Party 10.8%, Sinn Fein 6.5%, Progressive Democrats 4.0%, Green Party 3.8%, other 10.9%; seats by party - Fianna Fail 81, Fine Gael 31, Labor Party 21, Sinn Fein 5, Progressive Democrats 8, Green Party 6, other 14 |
bicameral Parliament or Libandla, an advisory body, consists of the Senate (30 seats - 10 appointed by the House of Assembly and 20 appointed by the monarch; members serve five-year terms) and the House of Assembly (65 seats - 10 appointed by the monarch and 55 elected by popular vote; members serve five-year terms)
elections: House of Assembly - last held 18 October 2003 (next to be held October 2008) election results: House of Assembly - balloting is done on a nonparty basis; candidates for election are nominated by the local council of each constituency and for each constituency the three candidates with the most votes in the first round of voting are narrowed to a single winner by a second round |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 77.73 years
male: 75.11 years female: 80.52 years (2006 est.) |
total population: 32.62 years
male: 32.1 years female: 33.17 years (2006 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2003 est.) |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 81.6% male: 82.6% female: 80.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Western Europe, occupying five-sixths of the island of Ireland in the North Atlantic Ocean, west of Great Britain | Southern Africa, between Mozambique and South Africa |
Map references | Europe | Africa |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm |
none (landlocked) |
Merchant marine | total: 23 ships (1000 GRT or over) 103,589 GRT/145,044 DWT
by type: cargo 19, chemical tanker 2, container 1, roll on/roll off 1 foreign-owned: 4 (Germany 2, US 2) registered in other countries: 21 (Bahamas 2, Bermuda 1, Cyprus 3, Gibraltar 1, Netherlands 10, Panama 2, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, UK 1) (2006) |
- |
Military branches | Irish Defense Forces (Oglaigh na h-Eireann): Army (includes Naval Service and Air Corps) (2006) | Umbutfo Swaziland Defense Force (USDF): Ground Force (includes air wing), Royal Swaziland Police Force (RSPF) (2005) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $700 million (FY00/01) | $41.6 million (2005 est.) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 0.9% (FY00/01) | 1.4% (2005 est.) |
National holiday | Saint Patrick's Day, 17 March | Independence Day, 6 September (1968) |
Nationality | noun: Irishman(men), Irishwoman(women), Irish (collective plural)
adjective: Irish |
noun: Swazi(s)
adjective: Swazi |
Natural hazards | NA | drought |
Natural resources | natural gas, peat, copper, lead, zinc, silver, barite, gypsum, limestone, dolomite | asbestos, coal, clay, cassiterite, hydropower, forests, small gold and diamond deposits, quarry stone, and talc |
Net migration rate | 4.87 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 1,728 km (2006) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Fianna Fail [Bertie AHERN]; Fine Gael [Enda KENNY]; Green Party [Trevor SARGENT]; Labor Party [Pat RABITTE]; Progressive Democrats [Michael McDOWELL]; Sinn Fein [Gerry ADAMS]; Socialist Party [Joe HIGGINS]; The Workers' Party [Sean GARLAND] | political parties are banned by the government under an emergency decree that will be revoked when the new constitution takes effect (January 2006)- the following are considered political associations; Imbokodvo National Movement or INM; Ngwane National Liberatory Congress or NNLC [Obed DLAMINI, president]; People's United Democratic Movement or PUDEMO [Mario MASUKU, president] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 4,062,235 (July 2006 est.) | 1,136,334
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July 2006 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 10% (1997 est.) | 69% (2005) |
Population growth rate | 1.15% (2006 est.) | -0.23% (2006 est.) |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 9, FM 106, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 3, FM 2 plus 4 repeaters, shortwave 3 (2004) |
Railways | total: 3,312 km
broad gauge: 1,947 km 1.600-m gauge (46 km electrified) narrow gauge: 1,365 km 0.914-m gauge (operated by the Irish Peat Board to transport peat to power stations and briquetting plants) (2005) |
total: 301 km
narrow gauge: 301 km 1.067-m gauge (2005) |
Religions | Roman Catholic 88.4%, Church of Ireland 3%, other Christian 1.6%, other 1.5%, unspecified 2%, none 3.5% (2002 census) | Zionist 40% (a blend of Christianity and indigenous ancestral worship), Roman Catholic 20%, Muslim 10%, Anglican, Bahai, Methodist, Mormon, Jewish and other 30% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.07 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.79 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.66 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age |
Telephone system | general assessment: modern digital system using cable and microwave radio relay
domestic: microwave radio relay international: country code - 353; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
general assessment: a somewhat modern but not an advanced system
domestic: system consists of carrier-equipped, open-wire lines and low-capacity, microwave radio relay international: country code - 268; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 2.033 million (2005) | 35,000 (2005) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 4.21 million (2005) | 200,000 (2005) |
Television broadcast stations | 4 (many low-power repeaters) (2001) | 12 (includes 7 relay stations) (2004) |
Terrain | mostly level to rolling interior plain surrounded by rugged hills and low mountains; sea cliffs on west coast | mostly mountains and hills; some moderately sloping plains |
Total fertility rate | 1.86 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 3.53 children born/woman (2006 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 4.3% (2005 est.) | 40% (2005 est.) |
Waterways | 753 km (pleasure craft only) (2005) | - |