People in rural Ireland are more optimistic about the future than many of their EU rural counterparts, according to a new survey.
However, the survey, carried out by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, shows that the rural Irish lag behind their urban counterparts when it comes to optimism about their futures.
The survey involved questioning 26,000 people in the EU on their perceptions of quality of living. It focused on the well-being of people in society, including the way people feel, view, and respond to their lives.
The survey found that Ireland had the second highest rate after Turkey of children born to rural couples, with an average of 2.1 children per rural Irish family.
It also shows that Irish people have a far higher level of church attendance than in the rest of the EU.
Some 56 per cent of Irish living in rural communities, and 35 per cent of Irish living in urban areas, attend church as least once a week. This compares to an average 22 per cent of people in rural areas and 17 per cent in urban areas who attend church once a week in other parts of the EU.
According to the study, people in rural Denmark, Finland and Cyprus are the most optimistic, closely followed by the Irish, while rural Slovenians, French and Italians are the least optimistic. However, people in urban areas are on average more optimistic about future prospects than people in rural areas.
The survey found that people in rural Europe tend to have smaller incomes than those in the cities. Training and education levels and Internet usage are lower in rural Europe than in urban areas.
The is the first European quality-of-life survey and serves as a snapshot of the current state of affairs from the eyes of the citizens.
The 60-to-70 question survey identified 12 aspects of the quality of life such as economic resource, health, employment, families, community life, housing, local environment, transport, public safety and crime, recreation, and cultural identity.
It was carried out in July 2003 by Intomart GfK in 28 countries - the 15 EU member-states; the 10 accession countries which became member-states in May 2004; and the three candidate countries, Bulgaria, Romania, and Turkey.
The Minster of State for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Mr Eamon Ó Cuiv, attributed the Irish results of the survey to a combination of the good quality of life in rural Ireland.
The findings were presented to delegates at the European Presidency Conference on Rural Development in Westport which opened yesterday.