MINISTER FOR Foreign Affairs Dermot Ahern has announced an Anti-Sectarianism Fund aimed at tackling interface problems.
The Government is supporting the programme with an initial €1 million.
Outlining the plan in Belfast yesterday, Mr Ahern said the scheme flowed from the Programme for Government agreed in advance of the last election. Money would support projects in communities aimed at countering division and intolerance.
"The Anti-Sectarianism Fund will serve as a dedicated resource to support new, innovative and more effective ways of addressing sectarianism and division in society," he said.
"I would encourage groups and individuals with specific and actionable ideas to apply to my department for funding under this scheme. Together we can hasten an end to sectarianism in our society."
Grant aid will be considered for existing cross-community projects, as well as for new initiatives aimed at the breaking down of barriers.
Applications will be handled by the Anglo-Irish division of the Department of Foreign Affairs in Dublin and application forms are available on the department's website.
Mr Ahern was speaking following talks with Denis Bradley and Lord Robin Eames, who head the group examining ways of confronting the legacy of the Troubles.
His talks were a continuation of the dialogue between the Eames-Bradley group and the Government, he said.
It was a disappointment, he added, that the IRA said earlier this week that it was "highly unlikely" it was prepared to meet Mr Bradley and Lord Eames to outline its views on the legacy of conflict.
The IRA has said it is unhappy with the decision by the British government to form the group, which will report to the Northern Secretary in late summer.
The Government would assist the Eames-Bradley group as well as the four new victims' commissioners and the Minister hoped their work would "dovetail".
Mr Ahern was also due to meet US president George Bush's special envoy Paula Dobriansky last night and is to meet the Northern Secretary Shaun Woodward later today.