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After decades of poor economic performance, the Irish government adopted major changes in economic policy in 1987. By the end of the 1990s, Ireland''s real GDP growth rate of almost 10% per year exceeds that of all member nations of the European Union (EU). A key component of Ireland''s growth strategy has been the encouragement of foreign direct investment through low tax rates and financial and logistical support provided by the Irish Industrial Development Agency (IDA). In 1999, Ireland confronts the issue of sustainability of the "Irish miracle" in the face of diminishing access to EU subsidies, increasingly strained physical infrastructure, and questions of equity in the distribution of economic gains across the population. The case includes substantial material relating to the Irish political, social, and historical context in addition to traditional economic statistics.; To provide a broad range of "raw material" for conducting a country analysis of Ireland. The case lends itself particularly well to an exploration of the role of industrial policy, macroeconomic reforms, foreign direct investment, and regional integration in national development strategy.