The Taoiseach has announced a fund of €3 million for people in the Repubic who were affected by violence during the Troubles.
The Government said it recognised as part of the Belfast Agreement that it was essential to acknowledge and address the suffering of the victims of violence as a necessary element of reconciliation.
Funding will be allocated by a commission to be known as the Remembrance Fund Commission, analogous to the Memorial Fund in Northern Ireland, which will be set up on a statutory basis soon.
The establishment of the Commission follows on from the work of the former Tánaiste, Mr John Wilson, and the publication of the Victims Commission Report A Place and a Namein 1999.
Legislation establishing the Commission will be published shortly.