Systems Analyst (NJIS Assessment Consultant )

The International Development Law Organization (IDLO) is the Technical Lead for the third iteration of the European Union’s Governance in Justice Programme (EU-GOJUST).

The EU-GOJUST programme is focused on improving access to justice for all Filipinos and contributing to Philippine socio-economic development through a more effective, inclusive, and accountable justice system. These efforts are pursued by supporting the priorities of Philippine justice institutions such as the Department of Local and Interior Governance (DILG), the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Supreme Court, and justice-sector civil society organizations and law schools.

Programme Summary

EU-GOJUST seeks to (1) develop more coordinated, efficient, gender-sensitive, and people­centered justice services and (2) enhance access to justice for all, especially for women and people living in vulnerable situations. To achieve these objectives, the Programme will design and deliver activities to:

• Improve the capacity of Justice Zones and the Justice Sector Coordination Council as the main coordinating mechanism between justice institutions and stakeholders;
• Expand, standardize, and deepen the Justice Zone model to address substantive justice issues at the local level;
• Improve access to legal aid services, with a focus on overcoming cultural and social barriers that prevent women from seeking justice;
• Strengthen the capacities of Local Government Units as the first point of contact for justice seekers;
• Increase awareness of rights and available remedies among rights-holders, especially women and marginalized groups; and
• Build the capacities of justice system actors to better address the specific issues faced by women and vulnerable population.

Justice agencies are interdependent and require data-sharing systems that account for this interdependence. For example, courts send Hold Departure Orders (HDO) to the Bureau of Immigration who in turn uses the HDO to monitor departing passengers. If the HDO is not sent in real time, the time gap between the issuance of the HDO and the actual receipt of the immigration can take some time and a person subject of an HDO may be able to escape.

Another prime example of data sharing across Justice sector agencies is that of the Corrections Cluster agencies. The Single Carpeta System aims to capture individuals’ prison and corrections records across the Bureau of Jail Management and Penology, Bureau of Corrections, Board of Pardons and Parole, and the Pardon and Parole Administration.

Currently, data sharing across the justice sector agencies is done manually. Agencies send out and receive documents and records in hard-copy format. Agency staff need to then encode the data contained in the paper documents in the case management/information system. Requesting agencies have to follow up continually and even resort to physical visits to get the requested information. Ad-hoc data requests and manual transmission of data are common concerns.

The use of information and communications technology (ICT) in the digitalization of transactions and services is viewed as a key driver for the competitiveness of the government in providing better services. One of the main thrusts of the 2023 Philippine Development Plan (2023 PDP) is for the justice sector to “use digital technology and build a robust, efficient, and disaster-resilient ICT architecture for the justice sector.”

One of the priority ICT programmes identified by the sub-chapter on Administration of Justice of the 2023 PDP is the National Justice Information System (NJIS). The NJIS is an ICT-based tool envisioned to facilitate the management and exchange of vital information across law enforcement and justice sector agencies in the discharge of their statutorily mandated public functions. The NJIS has been included in the 2011-2016, 2017-2022, and the current 2023-2028 PDP.

It is envisioned to be a seamless, knowledge-based and knowledge-driven interface and portal that will solve information gaps and address collaboration issues in the justice system. It is anchored on a secured platform that links justice sector agencies for a holistic approach to crime prevention and resolution. The implementing agencies of the NJIS include the following:

1. The Law Enforcement Cluster

• National Prosecution Service (NPS)
• National Bureau of Investigation (NBI)
• Bureau of Immigration (BI)
• Philippine National Police (PNP)
• Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA)
• Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB)

2, The Corrections Cluster

• Bureau of Corrections (BuCor)
• Board of Pardons and Parole (BPP)
• Parole and Probation Administration (PPA)
• Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP)

3. The Supreme Court

EU-GOJUST has supported the NJIS Data Exchange Platform to develop an interoperability layer for the DOJ, BuCor, BJMP, and BI. A special consumer application was also developed for the Board of Pardons and Parole and a generic consumer application was developed for all other agencies that are authorized and need to access the data already available from DOJ, BuCor, BJMP, and BI.

For this assignment, the consultant will support the further development of NJIS in relation to the following:

• An assessment of the current status of the NJIS and its adjacent systems.
• Enhancements for the National Inmate Management System (NIMS) of the BJMP

The scope of work of the consultant shall include the support for the following activities, among others:

1. A comprehensive desk review of project briefs, business process maps, terms of references, system requirements, technical reviews and assessments, project reports, and other documents and artifacts related to the NJIS and the component case management systems;

2. Conduct key informant interviews and focus group discussions with officials and experts of the Department of Justice, Supreme Court, and other NJIS agencies project to cover the following, among others:

•  Overview of general business processes and interlinkages among the participating agencies
• Status of the NJIS
• Status of development and implementation of component case management systems
• Data requirements of individual agencies based on the general business process
• Security requirements for NJIS
• Change management requirements for NJIS
• Project governance structure
• Legal or policy issues on data or information sharing;

3. Conduct a technical review of the individual case management systems including the data structures, and identify gaps and areas for further improvement to ensure compatibility with          the information NJIS information exchange system;

4. Provide technical support and advice to the BJMP for the enhancement of the NIMS;

5. Provide an assessment and analysis of the Good Conduct Time Allowance Calculator systems being piloted;

6. Conduct a technical review of the middleware software developed by the Department of Justice, including standards for information sharing, information assurance technology,                    infrastructure requirements, the reports that can be generated, roll-out and training;

7. Review the project management structure of the NJIS project and recommend areas for improvement; and

8. Review the current implementation plan and change management strategy for the NJIS project and propose a roadmap for improved implementation and identify possible areas of              support for EU-GOJUST.

The output of this engagement is:

1.An Inception Report with a workplan submitted to the technical team no later than 5 days after the commencement of the assignment.

2. A Review Report on the BJMP’s NIMS.

3. An Assessment Report structured as follows:

• Executive summary
• Introduction and Background
• Main findings related to the overall and specific objectives of this assignment
• Key Recommendations
• Conclusion
• Relevant Annexes

4. Annexes to the Assessment report, to include the following:

• A presentation ready, summary slide deck of the assessment objectives, methods, key conclusions and recommendations.
• A presentation and discussion of the slide deck with the EU-GOJUST team.
• Proposed roadmap for NJIS
• Recommendation of strategic interventions for the EU-GOJUST programme
• Terms of References for additional non-key expert missions and/or service contracts proposed by the study, including indicative cost
• List of people interviewed and offices visited with their address and contact details

The indicative deliverables for the assignments are the following:

1. Development of Inception Report

• Kickoff briefing with technical team and DOJ
• Initial desk review
• Drafting of inception report
• Validation of inception report with technical team and DOJ

2.Focus Group Discussions and Key Informant Interviews

• Create list of participants
• Validate participant list with technical team and DOJ
• Hold FGD and KII
• Submit annotated notes of FGD and KII 

3. Review of BJMP NIMS

• Conduct third party review
• Review and finalize BJMP’s terms of reference for technical service providers for enhancement of NIMS

4. Draft NJIS Assessment Report

• Site visits and technical review of nominated case management system/database of NJIS agencies
• Technical review of NJIS middleware platform and inter-operability layer
• Review of Good Conduct Time Allowance Calculator applications being piloted by BJMP and BuCor
• Submit draft of initial findings, including:
  • Roadmap
  • Proposed security measures,
  • Key recommendations,
  • Sample terms of references
  • Recommend software and hardware requirements, including technical specifications, if needed
  • Create a presentation slide deck with initial findings and recommendations

5. Finalized NJIS Assessment Report

• Presentation of key findings to technical team
• Presentation of key findings to relevant stakeholders
• Incorporation of comments and suggestions
• Final editing and submission

Education and Work Experience

• University degree in computer science, software engineering, math or information systems. University degree can be substituted by twenty years (20) of relevant experience;
• Advanced degree in computer science, software engineering, computer and IT architecture preferred; and 
• Additional certificates or courses on IT enterprise architecture, IT solutions architecture, and similar courses would be preferred.

General Professional Experience

•  Minimum of 10 years of relevant professional experience, of which 5 is in a developing country in one or more information technology areas including but not limited to IT architecture, infrastructure, cloud development, engineering and software architecture design, business analysis, development and IT operations, project and product management and the like. 

Specific Professional Experience

• Previous work on software architecture, collaboration frameworks, of an institution with multiple and diverse locations;
• Previous experience in third-party software review;
• Previous work on enterprise solutions for large and diverse organisations;
• Previous work on case management systems in a justice sector agency, preferred;
• Previous experience in the Philippine justice sector preferred.
• Experience in formulating and implementing change management strategies;
• Knowledge of Python and JavaScript platform development, preferred
• Experience in implementing Software Development Life Cycle and best practices in software development
• Familiarity with Linux operating systems and experience in developing on the Linux platform is an advantage
• Strong knowledge in database technologies, SQL, ORM, and other relevant technologies
• Familiarity with Git workflow is an advantage.
• Familiarity with Docker technology is an advantage

Languages

• Fluency in English is required
• Fluency in Tagalog is required

Skills & Abilities

•  
• Excellent analytical competence, technical skills, and detail oriented
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• Active listening skills and strong writing skills
• Ability to coordinate and communicate with key stakeholders
• Proven ability to assess business needs and translate them into relevant solutions
• Ability to prioritize critical tasks and work well in an output-driven environment
• The ability to work independently and as part of the team
• Accuracy and good attention to detail
• Strong computer, hardware, software, analytical and problem-solving skills