The United Nations General Assembly has overwhelmingly backed a resolution calling for the wider use of world maps that more accurately represent the size of continents, particularly Africa.
The resolution, championed by Togo on behalf of the African Group and supported by the African Union, was adopted on Friday with 164 countries voting in favour. The United States was the only country to vote against it, while six countries — Ukraine, Serbia, Lithuania, Estonia, Georgia and Moldova — abstained.
The initiative seeks to promote the use of equal-area map projections, including the Equal Earth projection, instead of relying heavily on the traditional Mercator projection.
The Mercator map, developed by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator in the 16th century, is widely used because of its usefulness for navigation. However, it significantly distorts the apparent size of land masses, particularly those located farther from the equator.
Under the Mercator projection, Africa can appear roughly comparable in size to Greenland, even though Africa is about 14 times larger. The Equal Earth projection provides a more proportionally accurate representation of the continents’ land areas.
Togo’s Foreign Minister, Robert Dussey, said the campaign was about more than cartography, arguing that inaccurate maps have contributed to a distorted understanding of Africa’s place in the world.
The African Union welcomed the UN decision, describing it as an important step towards more accurate and equitable geographical representation.
However, the United States opposed the resolution. Its representative argued that the initiative was an ideological exercise that distracted the General Assembly from more pressing global issues and could undermine the credibility of the United Nations.
The resolution is non-binding and does not ban the Mercator projection. Instead, it encourages governments, schools, international organisations, publishers and technology companies to consider adopting maps that more accurately portray the relative size of the world’s land masses.
The UN vote marks a major victory for the African-led “Correct the Map” campaign, which argues that how the world is visually represented can influence perceptions of the size, importance and geographical position of different regions.
