SIGMA Data Schema

This document describes the data schema used in the SIGMA Unified Global Standards Index.

Master Schema — 22 Fields per Entry

Every entry in the SIGMA index carries the following fields:

#	Field Name	Type	Description	Example
1	`sigma_id`	String	Unique SIGMA identifier	`HL-ISO-15189-2022`
2	`entry_type`	Enum	Standards Body / Standard / Framework / Treaty / Guideline / Regulation / Classification / Code of Practice / Recommendation	`Standard`
3	`meta_layer`	Enum	L1 Life Sciences / L2 Physical Sciences / L3 Society & Governance / L4 Economy & Trade / L5 Technology & Infrastructure / L6 Environment	`L1 Life Sciences`
4	`domain`	String (from 40-domain taxonomy)	Primary domain	`Health & Medical`
5	`sub_domain`	String	Sub-category within domain	`Clinical Laboratories`
6	`name_full`	String	Complete official name	`Medical laboratories — Requirements for quality and competence`
7	`name_short`	String	Common name / acronym	`ISO 15189`
8	`standard_id`	String	Official identifier from issuing body	`ISO 15189:2022`
9	`issuer`	String	Name of issuing body	`ISO (TC 212)`
10	`issuer_type`	Enum	UN Agency / Treaty Body / ISO / IEC / ITU / Industry SDO / Professional Body / NGO / Intergovernmental / National Government	`ISO`
11	`governance_layer`	Enum	International / Regional / National	`International`
12	`geographic_scope`	String	Countries / regions where formally applicable	`Global — 175 ISO member countries`
13	`year_published`	Integer	Year of current edition	`2022`
14	`year_first`	Integer	Year first published	`2003`
15	`status`	Enum	Active / Withdrawn / Superseded / Under Development / Under Review	`Active`
16	`mandate`	Enum	Mandatory / Voluntary / Voluntary-with-regulatory-adoption / Treaty-binding	`Voluntary`
17	`sector_applicability`	String	Who must/should use this standard	`Healthcare laboratories / accreditation bodies / regulators`
18	`why_it_matters`	String	Plain-language explanation of significance	`Defines quality requirements for medical labs; basis for lab accreditation in 100+ countries`
19	`key_outputs`	String	Main standards/versions/elements	`ISO 15189:2022 (third edition); covers pre-examination, examination, post-examination processes`
20	`official_url`	URL	Primary source URL (authoritative, stable)	`https://www.iso.org/standard/76677.html`
21	`data_source`	String	Where this entry's data was obtained	`ISO Open Data CSV + manual verification`
22	`notes`	String	Any additional contextual information	`Replaced 2012 edition; significant restructuring of management requirements`

Google Sheet Curation Sync

The shared Google Sheet may include curation-only metadata columns after the 22 master fields, including related_sigma_ids, llm_enriched, and last_updated. These fields are useful for editorial workflow and future enrichment, but they are not part of the published master release schema yet.

Run make sync-google-sheet to export the Sheet into data/processed/google_sheet_master.csv. The sync script keeps only the 22 master fields so existing validation, release builds, and GitHub Pages downloads remain compatible.

Supplementary Entity Tables

Standards Bodies Register

One record per issuing organisation.

Fields: org_id, org_name, org_acronym, org_type, founding_year, hq_country, hq_city, geographic_scope, governance_structure, iso_member (Y/N), wikidata_qid, official_url, linkedin_url, twitter_handle, standard_count, ics_scope, parent_org_id.

Relationships Map

Captures inter-standard and inter-organisation relationships.

Fields: from_id, to_id, relationship_type, confidence, source_url, notes.

Allowed relationship_type values: references, supersedes, adopted_by, implements, aligned_with, referenced_by, harmonised_with, national_adoption_of, inspires.

Allowed confidence values: source-confirmed, curator-reviewed, llm-suggested. LLM-suggested relationships must not be published as final graph edges until a human reviewer confirms the source.

Relationship CSVs are validated by scripts/validate_relationships.py. Empty header-only templates are allowed, but published rows require from_id, to_id, relationship_type, confidence, and source_url.

Ratification & Adoption Tracker

For treaty and convention entries only. One row per country-per-treaty.

Fields: sigma_id, country_iso3, country_name, status (signatory / ratified / acceded / not party), date, reservations, source_url.

ID Convention

SIGMA IDs follow a deterministic, human-readable pattern:

[DOMAIN_CODE]-[ISSUER_CODE]-[STD_NUMBER]-[YEAR]

Examples:

HL-ISO-15189-2022 — Health, ISO standard 15189, 2022 edition
HR-UN-CRC-1989 — Human Rights, UN Convention, CRC, 1989
DG-IETF-RFC9110-2022 — Digital, IETF, RFC 9110, 2022
FS-CAC-GL21-2021 — Food Safety, Codex Alimentarius Commission, GL 21, 2021
FI-BCBS-BASELIII-2010 — Finance, BCBS, Basel III, 2010
HM-IASC-SPHERE-2018 — Humanitarian, IASC/Sphere, 2018 edition