SubRegionalization Handbook

Foundational Elements

A Note on Terminology

Sub-regional units go by many names internationally. When we refer to a sub-region in this document, we may use a variety of names to refer to the same entity. In IFs, there is a bias toward the use of “province” to refer to a sub-regional unit, but it is functionally equivalent to states, departments, territories, or any other name for a sub-regional unit.

Much of the following discussion will involve variables included in the model, such as GDP or POPULATION. These may be referred to as variable or series. The two terms are used interchangeably here. 

Database Modification

IFsHistSeriesXXX.mdb

Before a country in IFs can be divided into states/provinces/departments, a new data file called IFsHistSeriesXXX.mdb — for example IFsHistSeriesChina.mdb — must be created. That file is a variation of the file called IFsHistSeries.mdb, which contains data tables for all countries across time, for all variables.

For each data table in IFsHistSeriesXXX.mdb, rows correspond to all states/provinces/departments in the specified country. The file includes a table called DataDict (analogous to the file DataDict.mdb described below) that provides information on names, sources, and specialized procedures followed to prepare the state/province/department data.  

To subregionalize countries that do not already have a IFsHistSeriesXXX.mdb file, users will need to create one. While this can be done manually, it is faster and simpler to just add the file with a feature in IFs. Before creating the table, however, make sure that a file called _ifsHistSeriesxxx.mdb exists in C:\Users\Public\IFs\DATA. After that is done, follow these steps:

• Click the path: Extended Features > Change Country Subregionalization > Add New Historical Series File
• Select the country that is intended to be subregionalized and click OK