Under the terms of the agreement, Ericsson, through its Ericsson Response(TM) initiative, and the Swedish Rescue Services Agency will share information and expertise and will engage in joint research and development activities in the area of disaster response and preparedness. Operationally, the two organizations will when called upon by an international humanitarian organization provide a fast deployment emergency mobile GSM system for use in disaster relief operations.

"The combination of SRSA's ground co-ordination, support and logistics strength and our telecommunications and IT competence will empower both the organizations' relief capacity," said Dag Nielsen, director of Ericsson Response.

"Ericsson Response and SRSA have been co-operating in the field since the 2001 earthquake in El Salvador," said Kjell Larsson, Head of Department, SRSA. "Valuable collaborations have taken place since then in Afghanistan, Algeria and Iran. This agreement formalizes this co-operation and will enhance both our efforts."