ISO 19160-2, Addressing -- Part 2: Assigning and maintaining addresses for objects in the physical world

An address is structured information that allows the unambiguous determination of an object for purposes of identification and location (ISO 19160-1:2015). The objects exist in the physical world (i.e. virtual objects are excluded) and can be outdoor (e.g. a building) or indoor (e.g. an office inside a building). Addresses provide one of the most common ways to locate and identify an object in the physical world. They are essential for the management of cities, for governance and public administration generally, for service delivery in the public and private sector, and they can give people status or (legal) identity in society. They also play an important role in detecting emerging hotspots and clusters of infected cases during an epidemic or pandemic. Yet, in many parts of the world, addresses do not exist or are poorly maintained, and even if they exist, corresponding address data is often lacking or incomplete. 

ISO 19160-2 specifies how to plan, implement, and maintain addresses and corresponding address data in order to gain maximum benefits for governance and society in the long run. It does not promote uniform addresses across the world but rather specifies good governance and management practices for any kind of address so that challenges related to address assignment and maintenance can be resolved consistently and sustainably. Based on international good practice, the requirements and recommendations are aimed at upholding a long-lasting addressing infrastructure that meets today’s needs for addressing that can also be used by future generations.

ISO 19160-2 supports the first goal of the United Nations Integrated Geospatial Information Framework (UN IGIF), namely, enabling geospatial (address) information governance, policy and institutional arrangements that ensure effective geospatial (address) information management, accommodate individual organizational requirements and arrangements, and that are aligned to national and global policy frameworks. ISO 19160-2 also supports the Universal Postal Union’s initiative, “Addressing the World – An Address for Everyone”, which promotes the establishment of national addressing infrastructures to the benefit of all. For example, it is a useful tool for those involved in slum upgrading, as addresses are often assigned when housing conditions in settlements are being improved. Finally, ISO 19160-2, together with the other parts of ISO 19160, contributes to address data being FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable).