Rapid Response Corps to be ready from September

A HIGHLY trained Rapid Response Corps will go on high alert from September and respond to any worldwide disasters on behalf of the Government, the Foreign Minister said yesterday.

The unit — consisting of 64 people ranging from 26 to 65 years of age and specialising in humanitarian aid, logistics, mining, IT, environmental and public information — completes training by mid-September.

Proposals to establish it were put forward by Foreign Minister Dermot Ahern last February in an effort “to deploy to world trouble spots expert humanitarian assistance at short notice for specific periods of time”.

After training, the selected 45 men and 19 women will go on standby for disasters worldwide and may be deployed to an affected area for a maximum of three months. The team will only remain on high alert for two years, Mr Ahern said yesterday during a visit to Brindisi, Italy, where €1 million worth of Irish aid is stored.

In future, the corps may respond to events in places such as the Congo or Sudan, or to disasters such as those in New Orleans and the Indian Ocean. The unit is intended to facilitate the peaceful outcome of foreign conflicts and apply the lessons learned through the peace process in the North.

Mr Ahern said: “They get an appropriate allowance, it’s not pay, but we meet their cost of accommodation while deployed and all their development training and travel and visas. We also cover their travel and medical insurance needs, war risk and medical treatment.”

When the idea of setting up the corps was mooted in February, Goal chief executive John O’Shea warned it would “leave Goal and other Irish implementing agencies at a serious disadvantage”. However, Concern and Trócaire broadly welcomed the initiative and it understood Goal now supports its establishment.