Improvement of the Database of the Convicted and Transfer of the Penitentiary Department Entirely Onto the Electronic Workflow Management (GE0053)

Improvement of the database of the convicted and transfer of the penitentiary department entirely onto the electronic workflow management; The Ministry of Corrections of Georgia will improve the existing or create a new convicted database for 2017. The existing database cannot provide adequate processing\sorting of the data; complete data is not outlined in the database, and appropriate filtration is not possible. Updated database will be introduced gradually. At the first stage the shortcomings of the existing system will be identified. The Ministry will study good practices of various countries and successful systems in this field. At the later stage, the future system model will be developed and tested. The updated base will allow the entire transfer of Penitentiary System and Penitentiary Department to an electronic workflow management system. Concurrently, this will enable better processing and analysis of statistical data, and better protection of personal data. Date of Implementation: 2016-2017; Issues to be Addressed: Existing electronic database containing a huge amount of information, does not allow thorough data processing and a complete transfer of the Penitentiary Department onto the electronic workflow management system due to technical restrictions. In addition, the database does not contain all the material of personal files of the convicted; hence, it does not meet modern standards. Main Objective: - Support the classification process according the risk of the convicted in the penitentiary system as a result of thorough processing of information; - Implementation of relevant rehabilitation- re-socialization programs; - Expediting the workflow management and public information delivery; - Supporting efficient, productive and economic disposal of the budget resources.

12. Improvement of the database of the convicted and transfer of the penitentiary department entirely onto the electronic workflow management

Commitment Text:

The Ministry of Corrections of Georgia will improve the existing or create a new convicted database for 2017. The existing database cannot provide adequate processing/sorting of the data; complete data is not outlined in the database, and appropriate filtration is not possible.

Updated database will be introduced gradually. At the first stage the shortcomings of the existing system will be identified. The Ministry will study good practices of various countries and successful systems in this field. At the later stage, the future system model will be developed and tested.

The updated base will allow the entire transfer of Penitentiary System and Penitentiary Department to an electronic workflow management system. Concurrently, this will enable better processing and analysis of statistical data, and better protection of personal data.

Responsible institution: Ministry of Corrections of Georgia

Supporting institution(s): European Union (EU) Technical Assistance Project

Start date: April 2016 End date: December 2017

Commitment Aim:

Georgian citizens had very little information about the processes within the penitentiary system; even specialized organizations faced difficulties obtaining official data about prisoners and their conditions. To address this, the then Ministry of Corrections pledged to study the shortcomings of existing prisoner databases, study the international standards for building and running those databases, and update or create a new database based on best standards.   

Status

Midterm: Limited

At the midterm, the commitment had limited implementation. The Ministry of Corrections partnered with the European Union for Justice Project to improve the Ministry’s databases. The assessment identified a need to harmonize different prisoner databases and create a new unified database, which would automatically generate the information needed. However, this information would be for internal use only and staff within the penitentiary system would have varying levels of access to the database.

End of term: Limited

The status of the commitment at the end of term remained limited. During the reporting period, the Ministry of Corrections continued cooperating with the European Union for Justice Project, the main donor for this commitment, on updating prisoner databases, a process that is expected to be completed by May 2019. [39] It should also be noted that following July 2018 amendments to the law, the penitentiary functions of the Ministry of Corrections were transferred to an agency under the Ministry of Justice, the Special Penitentiary Service. [40]

Did It Open Government?

Access to Information: Did Not Change

Civic Participation: Did Not Change

Public Accountability: Did not Change

As written, the commitment is not clearly relevant to OGP values, given that the database was only intended for internal use. Neither did the commitment open the penitentiary system in practice, as no new data on the convicted or on the government work and expenses in the field has been made available to the public.

Carried Forward?

The commitment was not carried into the new Action Plan 2018−2019.

[40] Law of Georgia, “Amendment to the Law on Special Penitentiary Service,” doc. no. 3129-RS (5 Jul. 2018), https://bit.ly/2QpbADg.