Growing Ireland

Ireland has been a superior performer among European countries in the last few decades and made a remarkable transition from one of the poorest countries in the continent. It is now without doubt quite a competitive economy whose citizens enjoy some of the highest standards of living in Europe and indeed the world. Apart from making proper regulatory reforms and investing in high quality human capital, it has also been mentioned by theorists that the great progress that it made were predicated on achieveing a demographic transition. This transition supposedly reduced the fertility rates hence the degree of dependency in the economy and allowed for emergence of the industrial economy.

Being a small nation both in respect of geography and population, it would be particularly prone to the standing problem of aging societies in Europe where birth rates have fallen precipitously below replacement levels. However, it seems that Ireland has again done well and is figured to be the fastest repopulating small country in the world. Eamon Quinn writes in the NYT here in a story that partly explains the approach. Unsurprisingly, it is based on somewhat flexible immigration policy and natural growth. quoted professionals state that population growth has not only ensured that the population has reached replacement but also that economic growth will be maintained. The lesson for other aging populations in Europe is pretty clear, responsible job-seeking immigrants can add immensely to the performance of an economy. Just watch Ireland.