The Department of Justice (DoJ) is advancing a Spain-backed initiative aimed at digitizing key components of the Philippine justice system through a collaboration involving government, academic and international partners.

Justice Undersecretary Nicholas Felix Ty and Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking executive director Hannah Lizette Manalili met with Spanish Ambassador Miguel Utray on 21 May to discuss the project and potential areas of cooperation.

During the meeting, Utray introduced Spanish technology firm INECO, which has been involved in Spain’s justice system digitization efforts for more than a decade.

The initiative, called Cooperation for Legal, Social, Academic, and Digital Advancement in the Philippines, or “Calesa Digital,” seeks to develop a digital legal framework and support the modernization of the DoJ’s justice administration processes.

The project is being implemented through a partnership among the DoJ, the Supreme Court, and the University of the Philippines Institute of Government and Law Reform.

Funding is being provided by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation.

According to the DoJ, the Calesa Digital project began in the last quarter of 2024 and gained momentum in 2025 following an international conference in Granada, Spain, attended by Philippine government representatives, including Ty.