The Bureau of Corrections (BuCor) announced on Thursday that it is now looking for possible partnership to provide financing the agency’s jail decongestion program and fully implement Republic Act 10575 or the BuCor Modernization Act.

BuCor director general Gregorio Catapang Jr. disclosed the plan as he welcomed the delegates from the United Nations Asia and Far East Institute for the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders (UNAFEI) and the Embassy of Japan at the New Conference Room of the NBP building in Muntinlupa City last Wednesday.

Catapang told the delegates that the BuCor has more than 44,000 hectares of land but lacks the needed facilities to house the increasing numbers of persons deprived of liberty (PDL).

He added that Japan and the Philippines face the same global problem aside from PDLs, so, we need to harness our capabilities and continue to be partners on a bigger perspective.

“We look forward to developing our capabilities, we want a different kind of endeavor that would really change the lives of PDLs and prepare them for their impending freedom to rejoin the society, but we lack the necessary funding to do so since our government has very limited resources,” Catapang said.

The UNAFEI, on the other hand, is offering five multilateral training courses listed during the 2025 fiscal year — from April 2025 to March 2026 00 to be participated in by at least 20 countries.

The course curriculum will consist of individual presentations, lectures from esteemed international and Japanese experts, group workshops and study visits.

Participants will also have the opportunity to share the latest knowledge on the topic of the course and gain insight into best practices around the world.

These programs are organized by the Japan International Cooperation Agency.