In the Philippines, criminal justice agencies use several different database systems to solve cases. However, there’s no single official reference document where all national crimes are listed, classified and indexed. This makes it difficult for different police stations, as well as government agencies, to share consistent crime information and case statistics.

With funding from the European Union (EU) and technical assistance from the British Council, UNOPS commissioned the development of the Philippine Index of Crimes and Philippine Crime Indexing Research System, as part of the Governance in Justice Programme, to address these issues.

“Fair administration of justice is essential to every nation. We are confident that this project can contribute towards that and will also help facilitate greater exchanges between the justice sector agencies in the Philippines,” says Ian Rector, UNOPS Director in the Philippines.

The crime index and the research system provide the government with information systems and harmonized crime data based on a common classification system that can be used for crime reporting, evaluation, decision-making and policy development.

The research system helps prosecutors correctly and consistently determine the classification of a criminal offence, based on the facts of the case. It’s also a vital policymaking tool, allowing Philippines’ Committee for the Revision of the Criminal Code to map and comparatively analyze criminal offences and corresponding penalties.

The crime index also aligns the Philippines’ criminal statutes to the United Nations International Classification of Crime for Statistical Purposes, which is a global classification system that allows for comparison on crime incidents worldwide.

“The handing over of the crime index and the research application to the Department of Justice ensures that they will be further developed and maintained – and guarantees their long-term sustainability,” says Enrico Strampelli, Head of Cooperation, EU Delegation to the Philippines.