Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Question 26: To ask the Minister for Defence the role his Department will play in the new Rapid Reaction Humanitarian Force as outlined in the White Paper on Development Aid; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [38147/06]

Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)
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The Government's recently published White Paper on Irish Aid provides for the creation of Ireland's own specific operational capabilities in responding to humanitarian emergencies: the Rapid Response Initiative (RRI).

The three main components of the initiative are the pre-positioning and transportation of material humanitarian supplies to disaster locations; the creation of a register of highly skilled and experienced individuals for deployment with international agencies at short notice; and an overall enhancement of our support to international humanitarian response agencies and mechanisms.

The Department of Foreign Affairs is working closely on this initiative with other Departments including my Department. In this regard a number of meetings have been held between officials from my Department and from the Department of Foreign Affairs over the last year. These meetings have focused on assistance my Department/Defence Forces may be able to provide in relation to the development of the RRI with particular reference to the first two pillars and considerable progress has been made.

In relation specifically to the second element of this initiative — that is, the creation of a register of skilled and experienced individuals ready for rapid deployment — through working closely with my Department and others, the Department of Foreign Affairs believes that the initiative will enable the release of key skilled people to take part in emergency teams deployed to make rapid needs assessments and assist in the coordination of relief. It is hoped that Ireland can help bridge some of the gaps in certain key sectors in order to fill particular gaps in capacity in the international community's humanitarian response.

In addition the White Paper on Irish Aid also provides for the establishment of a Volunteer Corps Unit within the Department of Foreign Affairs to harness the strong volunteer spirit, which exists across the country in support of overseas development activities. I am informed by my colleague, Mr. Dermot Ahern, T.D., Minister for Foreign Affairs, that his Department is to open an Irish Aid Volunteering Centre in Dublin in early 2007. This centre will provide information, support and advice to those wishing to volunteer.