THERE HAS been an enormous shift in the global perception of Ireland in the last 18 months. It seemed in the 1990s that we had shifted from a small debt-ridden agrarian economy that exported its people on mass, to a dynamic, open, free market economy that was a model for all similarly-sized nations.

To casual observers the transformation took place over a couple of years. In reality, the transition was full of false starts and dead-end economic initiatives.

In private even the most economically-proud advocate for Ireland will admit that the situation during the years of economic success also featured several flaws that often went unnoticed. A property bubble was not the best foundation upon which to build a nation’s fortune.

Yet the international perception was of a nation that could do no wrong. Even our most vocal long-term critics seemed to adopt a grudging admiration for the plucky Irish entrepreneurial character that dragged a small island

on the west coast of Europe onto the global economic arena.

Historians will decide if hubris got the better of us and we failed to spot the mistakes. What is clear is that just as the perceptions of Ireland during the boom years were perhaps too rose-tinted, so too the views of our economic downturn risk painting us as a complete failure.

The importance of our image abroad cannot be over-emphasised. A cornerstone of our economy is foreign investment and the future of the much-heralded “smart economy” depends on international support. In the short term it will also play a critical part in deciding the borrowing requirements placed upon us as we seek to keep the economy afloat. It’s vital we get the correct story of our situation and our plans for the future out into the international public domain.