The Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Cowen, will host a SDLP delegation in Dublin today.
The meeting comes ahead of a new round of talks in the Northern Ireland peace process.
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, will meet the British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair, in Hillsborough on Thursday week, where they will present the pro-Agreement parties with their blueprint for restoring devolution to Northern Ireland.
The date is particularly significant as it is the fifth anniversary of the signing of the Belfast Agreement on Good Friday, 1998.
The SDLP leader Mr Mark Durkan will head today's delegation, which will also include deputy leader Ms Bríd Rodgers, Mr Alex Attwood MLA and Assembly election candidates Mr Frank Britton and Mr Dominic Bradley.
