A comprehensive citizens' information service is to be made available to a broader audience by establishing a telephone link-up.
Citizens' information centres across the State have been providing information on rights and entitlements since 1995.
A regional telephone information service will be established on a pilot basis in the coming weeks. The call centre will be in Cork, and its hotline number will initially be only accessible there. If successful, the initiative will be extended throughout the State.
The development has been confirmed by the National Social Services Board in its annual report published yesterday.
The board has already appointed a manager to oversee the project, and five full-time staff are to be recruited to take calls. The annual cost of running the operation will be in the region of £170,000.
The board's director, Ms Leonie Lunny, said she believed a telephone information service would have great potential to improve access to citizens' information by the public.
A market survey found a high level of interest in such a service, with almost four in 10 adults claiming they were likely to use it, she said.
The NSSB's 1998 annual report shows the demand for information on entitlements continues to rise. There were almost 183,000 callers last year to the 85 information centres, an increase of 24 per cent on 1997. Most queries were in relation to social welfare issues or unemployment.
The new telephone link is an attempt to meet the increased demand for information.
The NSSB is due to merge with part of the National Rehabilitation Board next year to meet the information needs of people with disabilities in addition to its present services. The new agency will be called Comhairle.