Introduction
Have you ever wondered how the different government agencies working in the justice sector (NBI, DOJ, BI, etc.) share their records? These agencies have long worked in silos and hence, so do their data. But with the vision of swift administration of justice for all, the National Justice Information System (NJIS) endeavors to break these silos and promote collaboration among the agencies through data sharing.
The work of integrating multiple government agencies is the first of its kind in the public sector. In this article, we’ll share how Sinag Solutions, together with the DICT and the DOJ, laid the foundation for digital transformation in the justice sector.
What is the National Justice Information System?
According to the Philippine Development Plan 2017 to 2022, the National Justice Information System (NJIS) as “a program intended to address and remedy the current information gaps in the Philippine criminal justice system by enabling effective sharing of data between the police, judiciary, probation services, custodial authorities, and criminal information registries, at key decision points in the criminal justice system process.” The National Justice Information System aims to bridge the gap between the fragmented information systems of different agencies and connect agencies under the justice sector to enable seamless, secure, and authenticated information exchange through a single portal. The NJIS is part of a bigger vision of digital transformation of the Justice sector further highlighted in the current Philippine Development Plan.
Digital Transformation in the Justice Sector
Motivational View
The Sinag team created a Stakeholder Map Matrix to ensure that the main goals and concerns of key people in the Justice sector are mapped and understood. In order to capture and visualize the goals, outcomes, requirements, constraints, and stakeholders of the NJIS, Sinag crafted a Motivational View document aided by the Stakeholder Map Matrix. These artifacts ensure that concerns and requirements are documented and expectation alignment is achieved, and key stakeholders are kept informed and satisfied.
Training and Prototype
An important aspect of any digital transformation endeavor is the overall readiness of the enterprise. In support of the DICT and the teams from the Justice sector, Sinag conducted training sessions on key concepts and best practices on integration and candidate integration technologies. Using these technologies, Sinag created a proof of concept and prototype of the envisioned NJIS.
Conclusion
Integration and data sharing can be a catalyst to improving the delivery of justice to all peoples. As with any digital transformation endeavor, silos need to be broken down and stakeholders kept engaged, and teams should be trained and equipped to implement. These are shown, in some degree, in the initial stages of the NJIS project. Once this becomes a fruition, there’s no need to imagine an integrated justice sector — we just need to see.
