The Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OGCIO) has established a national roaming arrangement across Ireland’s three primary mobile network operators—eir, Three Ireland, and Vodafone—to strengthen communications infrastructure for frontline emergency services.

Under the new framework, compatible devices and software used by first responders will automatically switch to whichever participating network is available. The setup is designed to provide greater network resilience and ensure continuous connectivity if one provider's network encounters severe congestion, localized outages, or technical disruptions.

The multi-network arrangement will support several public safety and disaster response organizations, including An Garda Síochána, the fire services, the National Ambulance Service, and Civil Defence. It will enable first responders to stream live video, transmit digital mapping, share high-resolution imagery, and transfer data alongside standard voice and short text communications.

For more than two decades, Ireland’s emergency services have relied heavily on Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA), a dedicated narrowband digital radio standard engineered primarily for voice and simple messaging. While TETRA remains in place for voice communications, it was not built to support modern high-bandwidth data transmission required during complex emergency incidents.

Frontline personnel are scheduled to begin operational testing of the roaming capabilities over the coming months. The field testing phase will be coordinated by Civil Defence in partnership with the OGCIO and other participating frontline agencies.