Pcodes for the Earthquake-Affected Area Release 5
Pcode is an abbreviated term for 'Place Code'. Pcodes are similar to zip codes and postal codes and are part of a data management system that provides unique reference codes to thousands of locations in northern Pakistan These codes provide a systematic means of linking and exchanging data and analysing relationships between them. Any information that is linked to one location with a pcode can be linked and analysed with any other.
Why are Pcodes useful?
Pcodes resolve the basic issue of what we all call a place. Using place-names as identifyers can easily lead to confusion over spelling, different languages or scripts as well as duplication. If agencies develop individual systems for naming or coding places this makes data sharing extremely difficult and huge amounts of potentially useful information go unshared, are manually re-typed or filed and forgotten. Spatial data standards agreed by all agencies provide a single, unified system for referring to locations, allowing the free exchange of data between participating agencies.
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