-
Updated the 5th of March 2019
Regional gap in GDP per capita, 2000-16 Index of regional
disparity in GDP per capita, 2016
The gap in GDP per capita between the two large Irish regions
increased over the last sixteen years. While GDP per capita in the
Southern and Eastern region increased by 74% between 2000 and 2016,
in the Border, Midland and Western region GDP per capita increased
by 11% only during the same period. By 2016, GDP per capita in
Southern and Eastern was 2.6 times higher than in the other region,
an unprecedentedly large difference. However, when the richest and
poorest smaller regions representing at least 10% of the population
are taken into account, regional economic disparities in Ireland
actually decreased between 2000 and 2016. Among 30 OECD countries
with comparable data, Ireland has the ninth lowest regional
disparities.
With a productivity growth of 1.2% per year over the period
2000-16, the Border, Midland and Western region fell also further
behind the South and East region, the latter recording productivity
growth of 3.7% per year.
Regional differences in youth unemployment rates have fallen in
recent years and are now close to the OECD average.
Productivity trends, most and least dynamic regions, 2000-16
Youth unemployment rate, 15-24 years old, 2007-17
Source: OECD Regional Database. Notes: (1) Figure on regional
gap in GDP per capita: OECD regions refer to the administrative
tier of subnational government (large regions, Territorial Level
2); the Ireland is composed of 2 large regions. (2) Figure on index
of regional disparity: top (bottom) 20% regions are defined as
those with the highest (lowest) GDP per capita until the equivalent
of 20% of national population is reached, this indicator provides a
harmonised measure to rank OECD countries, using data for small
regions (Territorial Level 3) when available. (3) Productivity is
measured as GDP per employee at place of work in constant prices,
constant Purchasing Power Parities (reference year 2010).
10 000
20 000
30 000
40 000
50 000
60 000
70 000
80 000
2000 2005 2010 2016
GDP per capita in USD PPP
Low est region
Border, Midland and
Western
Highest region
Southern and Eastern
28 770 USD
74 836 USD
62 559 USDIreland
1
2
3
4
Top 20 % richest over bottom 20% poorest regionsRatio
Country (number of regions considered)
Small regions(TL3)
Large regions (TL2)
2016 2000
Ireland
30 000
50 000
70 000
90 000
110 000
130 000
150 000
170 000
190 000
2000 2005 2010 2016
GDP per worker in USD PPP
Border, Midland, W.: lowest productivity growth (+1.2%
annually)
South and East: highest productivity in 2016 and highest
productivity growth (+3.7% average annual growth over 2000-16)
OECD
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
35
40
2007 2012 2017
rate (%)
Lowest rateSouthern and Eastern
Highest rateBorder, Midland and
14.2%
15.9%
14.4%Ireland
Regions and Cities at a Glance 2018 – IRELAND
http://www.oecd.org/regional
Economic trends in regions
-
Updated the 5th of March 2019
Relative ranking of the regions with the best and worst outcomes
in the 11 well-being dimensions, with respect to all 402 OECD
regions. The eleven dimensions are ordered by decreasing regional
disparities in the country. Each well-being dimension is measured
by the indicators in the table below.
The two Irish regions rank among the top 20% of the OECD regions
in community (perceived social network support) and environment.
The country shows large regional differences in jobs, with the
South East region being in the top 20% of OECD regions and the
Border, Midland and West region in the bottom 20%.
Except for unemployment rate, voter turnout, and disposable
income, both Irish regions (South and East as well as Border,
Midland and West) fare better than the OECD median region in all of
the well-being indicators.
Source: OECD Regional Database. Visualisation:
https://www.oecdregionalwellbeing.org.
Notes: (1) OECD regions refer to the first administrative tier
of subnational government (large regions, Territorial Level 2);
Ireland is composed of 2 large regions. (2) Household income per
capita data are based on USD constant PPP, constant prices (year
2010).
South andEast
Border, Midlandand West South and
East
South andEast
Border, Midlandand West
South andEast
Border, Midlandand West
South andEast
Border, Midlandand West
Border, Midlandand West
South andEast
Border, Midlandand West
South andEast
Border, Midlandand West
Border, Midlandand West
South andEast
Border, Midlandand West
South andEast
Border, Midlandand West
South andEast
South andEast
Border, Midlandand West
Jobs Safety Access toservices
Education Housing Income LifeSatisfaction
Community Environment Health CivicEngagement
Top region Bottom region
Ra
nkin
g o
f O
EC
D r
eg
ion
s(1
to
40
2)
top
20
%b
otto
m 2
0%
mid
dle
60
%
Top 20% Bottom 20%
Jobs
Employment rate 15 to 64 years old (%), 2017 67.9 67.7 80.4
32.2
Unemployment rate 15 to 64 years old (%), 2017 6.9 5.5 6.8
8.0
Safety
Homicide Rate (per 100 000 people), 2016 0.8 1.3 0.5 0.9
Access to services
Households w ith broadband access (%), 2017 88.0 78.0 90.0
83.0
Education
Labour force w ith at least upper secondary education (%), 2017
86.2 81.7 86.9 81.3
Housing
Rooms per person, 2016 2.1 1.8 2.2 2.0
Income
Disposable income per capita (in USD PPP), 2016 17 630 17 695 18
312 15 759
Life Satisfaction
Life satisfaction (scale from 0 to 10), 2013 7.1 6.8 7.2 7.0
Community
Perceived social netw ork support (%), 2013 96.8 91.4 97.2
96.0
Environment
Level of air pollution in PM 2.5 (µg/m³), 2015 7.2 12.4 6.4
7.0
Health
Life Expectancy at birth (years), 2016 81.8 80.4 81.8 81.7
Age adjusted mortality rate (per 1 000 people), 2016 7.6 8.1 7.5
7.6
Civic engagement
Voters in last national election (%), 2017 or lastest year 64.8
70.9 65.2 64.6
Irish regionsCountry
Average
OECD median
region
Differences in well-being across regions
https://www.oecdregionalwellbeing.org/
-
Updated the 5th of March 2019
OECD population is concentrated in cities* Percentage of
population in cities, 2016
Source: OECD Metropolitan Database. Number of cities: 5 in
Ireland and 1 138 in the OECD.
In Ireland, 59% of the population lives in cities of more than
50 000 inhabitants. The share of population in cities with more
than 500 000 people is 41% compared to 55% in the OECD area.
Importance of metropolitan areas Cities above 500 000 people,
2016
Contribution of metropolitan areas to GDP growth Cities above
500 000 people, 2000-16
The metropolitan area of Dublin accounts for 53% of national GDP
and 43% of employment. Between 2000 and 2016 it generated 65% of
the national GDP growth.
In terms of GDP per capita, Dublin ranks in the top 20% among
the 327 OECD Metropolitan areas. Air pollution in the metropolitan
area of Dublin is among the lowest 30% in OECD countries.
OECD Metropolitan areas ranking Cities above 500 000 people
GDP per capita, 2016
Air pollution (PM2.5), 2017
Source: OECD Metropolitan Database. Number of metropolitan areas
with a population of over 500 000: 1 in Ireland compared to 327 in
the OECD.
* Note: Cities are defined here as functional urban areas, which
are composed by high-density urban centres of at least 50,000
people and their areas of influence (commuting zone). For more
information, see:
http://www.oecd.org/cfe/regional-policy/functionalurbanareasbycountry.htm.
41%
9%9%
41%
United States
people in citieswith population above 500 000
peopleoutside cities
United States
people in cities withpopulation between50 000 and 250 000
4.7 million people - 59% live in cities
United StatesIreland
people in cities with population between 250 000 and 500 000
OECD average
1.2 billion people - 70%live in cities
people in citieswith population
above 500 000
people in cities withpopulation between
50 000 and 250 000
peopleoutside cities
55%
9%
30%
people in cities with populationbetween 250 000 and 500 000
6%
53%43% 41%
63%58% 55%
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
% of nationalGDP
% of nationalemployment
% of nationalpopulation
Ireland OECD average%
65%68%
Du
blin
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
1 2
%
All metropolitan areas Largest contributor
Ireland OECD average
32
7 m
etr
op
olit
an
are
as
0
20 000
40 000
60 000
80 000
100 000USD PPP
Top 20% richest metropolitan areas
Bottom 20% poorest metropolitan areas
0
10
20
30
Lev el of air pollution in PM 2.5 (µg/m³)
Top 20% least polluted metropolitan areas
Bottom 20% most polluted metropolitan areas
Metropolitan areas in the national economy
http://www.oecd.org/cfe/regional-policy/functionalurbanareasbycountry.htm
-
Updated the 5th of March 2019
Subnational government expenditure by function As a share of
total subnational government expenditure, 2016
Subnational government expenditure amounts to USD 1 486 per
capita in Ireland compared to an OECD average of USD 6 817. In
Ireland, this is equivalent to 7.6% of total public expenditure and
to 2% of GDP. In comparison, subnational government expenditure
across the OECD accounts for 40.4% of total public expenditure and
for 16.2% of GDP. Social protection and ’Other’ functions (housing
and community amenities, recreation, culture and religion;
environment; public order and safety) are the two largest spending
items for subnational governments in Ireland. Together, they
represent 64% of subnational expenditure compared to 29% in the
OECD area.
In Ireland, 15.3% of the total public investment was carried out
by subnational governments compared to an OECD average of
56.9%.
Role of subnational governments in public investment Subnational
government public investment per capita, 2016
Source: OECD Subnational Government Structure and Finance
Database.
OECD Regions and Cities at a Glance 2018
The 2018 edition of OECD Regions and Cities at a Glance shows
how regions and cities contribute to national growth and the
well-being of societies. It updates its regular set of
region-by-region indicators, examining a wide range of policies and
trends and identifying those regions that are outperforming or
lagging behind in their country.
Consult this publication on line: https://oe.cd/pub/2n9
OtherOther 34% 15%
Social protection 30% 14% Social protection
Economic affairs 21% 14% Economic affairs
Education 10% 25% Education
General public services 5% 14% General public services
HealthHealth 0% 18%
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Ireland OECD average
Subnational expenditure per capita: USD 1 486 USD 6 817
0
200
400
600
800
1 000
1 200
1 400
Total public investmentUSD 1 305 per capita1.8% of GDP
Total public investmentUSD 1 278 per capita3.0% of GDP
Subnational governmentinvestmentUSD 199 per capita15.3% of
public invest.
USD per capita
Subnational government investmentUSD 727 per capita 56.9% of
public invest.
OECD averageIreland
Subnational government finance
https://oe.cd/pub/2n9
