Starting Monday, emergency callers in the Limburg and Namur provinces dialling 112 will first need to select a language.
The trial aims to eliminate language barriers in emergency situations, offering options in Dutch, French, or German.
In Limburg, calls often get routed to French-speaking centres in Liège due to mobile signal towers near the language border.
Callers choosing Dutch are redirected to a Flemish emergency centre, while those choosing French or German are connected to corresponding centres in Wallonia and Liège, respectively.
Emergency dispatchers use translation software to ensure orders for responders are delivered in the language of their local station, the Ministry of Home Affairs explains.
The language selection menu applies only to the 112 number, and does not affect calls made to the police via 101.
