Economic and Social Development: Northern Ireland Good Friday Agreement

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Economic and Social Development: Northern Ireland Good Friday Agreement

Implementations

Economic and Social Development – 1998

The Good Friday Agreement outlined a broad economic and social reform agenda. In particular, the accord aimed for policies promoting sustained economic growth and community development in Northern Ireland. To achieve these initiatives, the accord required the British government to come up with measures that needed to be taken for employment equality, including a new regional development strategy, in Northern Ireland for the Assembly to consider.

In terms of promoting employment equality, the Northern Ireland Act (1998) also provided for the establishment of the Equality Commission, which became operational on 1 September 1999.1“The Good Friday Agreement: Equality Commission for Northern Ireland,” BBC News, May 2006, accessed January 21, 2013, http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/schools/agreement/equality/equality…

Economic and Social Development – 1999

The Economic Development Strategy Review Steering Group was launched in March 1999 to provide recommendations for broad social and economic reforms. This group produced Strategy 2010: A Draft Economic Policy Review. In the report, the group made 62 different recommendations.2

The Department for Social Development was established in 1999, which was responsible for urban regeneration, community, and voluntary sector development, social legislation, housing, social security benefits, pensions, and child support.3 Similarly, the government established the Department of Enterprise, Investment, and Trade to formulate and develop economic policy.4

  1. “The Good Friday Agreement: New Economic Development Strategy,” BBC News, May 2006, accessed February 13, 2013, http://www.bbc.co.uk/northernireland/schools/agreement/economy/economic1…

    For the regional development strategy, the government commissioned a regional Strategic Framework for Northern Ireland, which produced a document in June 1997. The document laid out Northern Ireland’s future development plans for the next two and half decades.1“The Good Friday Agreement: New Economic Development Strategy,”

  2. “Department for Social Development,” DSD, accessed February 13, 2013, http://www.dsdni.gov.uk/index/about_dsd.htm.
  3. “Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment,” accessed February 13, 2013, http://www.detini.gov.uk/deti-about-home.htm.

Economic and Social Development – 2000

The final draft of the Regional Strategic Framework was considered by the Assembly in 2000.1

  1. “The Good Friday Agreement: New Economic Development Strategy.”

Economic and Social Development – 2001

The economic and social reform provisions of the accord were implemented by 2000. While still economically recovering after ten years of signing the Good Friday Agreement, the government’s active involvement in the economic activities generated a lot of confidence in the private sector for investment. Between 1998 and January 2000, the unemployment rate declined rapidly from around 9% to below 5%.

Economic and Social Development – 2002

The unemployment rate remained steady.

Economic and Social Development – 2003

No developments observed this year.

Economic and Social Development – 2004

No developments observed this year.

Economic and Social Development – 2005

No developments observed this year.

Economic and Social Development – 2006

No developments observed this year.

Economic and Social Development – 2007

This trend in the unemployment rate remained very stable until December 2007.

As the world economy suffered a financial crisis starting in 2008, the unemployment rate in Northern Ireland increased rapidly and stood at above 8% by the end of December 2008.1

  1. “Ireland Unemployment Rate,” Trading Economics, accessed February 13, 2013, http://www.tradingeconomics.com/ireland/unemployment-rate.