Article summary
Handle Somalia +252 multi-source lists without forcing one fixed-length expression, using versioned rules, an exception queue and field-family acceptance for WS Full Format results.
The first step in a Somalia WhatsApp Full Format check is not running a task. It is stopping the use of one fixed-length formula to “repair” every +252 record. Numbering plans change, while lists can combine legacy systems, national notation, diaspora contact points and entry errors. A defensible workflow can state which rule version accepted each phone and when every returned field was observed.
Treat the official plan as versioned data
The ITU maintains a Somalia +252 numbering-plan entry, and Somalia’s National Communications Authority publishes a national numbering-plan document. A cleanup rule records source URL, publication or access date and internal version. It never turns an old blog example into a permanent regular expression.
Stratify data provenance before normalization
| Source stratum | Typical issue | First action |
|---|---|---|
| Local form | National notation and spacing | Convert only with explicit country choice |
| Cross-border CRM | +252 mixed with other countries | Identify explicit country codes first |
| Legacy export | Numeric type, truncation and notes | Retain raw and quarantine exceptions |
| Partner list | Unknown rule, permission and date | Complete provenance review first |
Variable length requires a range table, not guessed digits
Never overwrite phone_raw. Create phone_normalized only when country evidence, prefix and an allowed length range agree. Send unresolved values to reason-coded exceptions such as country_conflict, length_out_of_range or ambiguous_local. Do not pad digits, remove middle digits or force the most common mobile prefix to improve a pass rate.
TXT is the execution layer, not the evidence warehouse
The final upload remains TXT with one phone per line. Provenance, permission, contact_id, rule version and exception reason stay in an internal crosswalk. This minimizes the upload while allowing the exported Excel to rejoin accurately. A later rule revision can also identify precisely which batches were affected.
What “Full Format” actually covers
AIPUSH WS Full Format may export phone, activity time, active days, gender, age, avatar, skin tone, avatar type, business-account observation and mapped WhatsApp phone. That is the defined field list, not a promise that every field is populated. It does not include conversations, live location, spending capacity or identity documents.
Give each field family a different lifetime
| Field family | Acceptance focus | Useful state |
|---|---|---|
| Phone/mapping | Collision, one-to-many, rule version | Confirmed, quarantined, unknown |
| Activity | checked_at and time zone | Current, expiring, expired |
| Profile | Missingness, applicability, bias | Observed, unknown, do-not-use |
| Avatar | Accessibility and personal-data risk | Short-lived, deleted |
| Business account | Encoding and coverage | Observation, never endorsement |
A mapped-phone collision must not overwrite the CRM
When the mapped WhatsApp phone differs from input, first determine whether it is a notation difference, shared contact point or genuine collision. Staging retains both values and mapping_review_state. Human review or an explicit rule decides; recency alone never grants authority to replace a customer key.
+252 alone does not establish location in Somalia
A country code is numbering-plan evidence. It does not prove that the holder is currently in Somalia, nor citizenship, language or diaspora status. Market location comes from orders, address or a person’s declaration, while language preference comes from user choice. Neither is inferred from phone or avatar.
Activity and profiles support only limited decisions
For permitted contacts, a recent activity observation may help time low-risk outreach. Profile data is restricted to aggregate content research with minimum sample sizes. Inferred age, gender, skin tone and avatar never decide finance, employment, insurance, price, identity verification or treatment of vulnerable groups.
How to recalculate after a plan update
When a new plan appears, run an impact assessment: which prefixes were added, which ranges changed and how many historical records are affected. Recalculate only affected records that still have a valid business purpose, retaining previous values and a migration log. Do not rerun the entire archive merely to make every workbook look uniform.
Questions the batch handoff must answer
The acceptance record states the +252 rule version, input by source, reasons for exceptions, coverage and unknowns for each Full Format column, mapping collisions, expiry, access roles and deletion date. Only then is the output a governed Full Format check rather than an unexplained wide spreadsheet.
