ABSTRACT

The Republic of Ireland is a small open economy with a total population of about 4 million. It gained its independence from Britain in 1922. Economically and socially underdeveloped for the first half of the twentieth century, it has experienced significant economic growth from the early 1990s onwards with the emergence of the so-called Celtic Tiger economy. This chapter traces the development of the Irish welfare state and outlines its main features, concluding with a brief discussion of the challenges it faces.