Codelist

Predefined set of terms from which some statistical coded concepts take their values.

The SDMX technical standards are sufficiently generic to allow institutions to adopt and implement any specific representation. However, the use of common code lists will facilitate users to work even more efficiently as it eases the maintenance of, and reduces the need for, mapping systems and interfaces delivering data and metadata to users. Therefore, a choice over code lists has a great impact on the efficiency of data sharing.

From version 2.1 of the standard it is possible to exchange and disseminate a partial code list which is extracted from the full code list and which supports the dimension values valid for a particular Data Structure Definition (DSD). The content of the partial code list is specified on a Constraint and can be specified for any object to which a Constraint may be attached. This makes it possible to use common (and often quite large) Code Lists in multiple DSDs and then to limit their content for use in a specific DSD.