UN Votes for New World Map to Show Africa’s True Size

United Nations General Assembly has taken a decision to endorse a new world map which depicts Africa in an accurate manner regarding its size, opposing the outdated Mercator projection map. “Correct the Map” resolution, tabled by Togo and supported by African Union members, was endorsed by 164 countries, with the USA voting against and six countries abstaining from voting on it. Though this resolution is not binding in nature, it may influence the maps used by various international organizations. The discussion has also brought back into the picture how map projections can influence geographic perception and significance of continents in the world.

What Did the UN Vote On?

The UN General Assembly voted for the “Correct the Map” resolution, which aims to promote the use of world maps which offer a more accurate depiction of continent sizes.

This resolution is brought by Togo, along with other supporters from the African Union (AU), and was approved by 164 member states, including France and the United Kingdom. The United States is the sole country voting against the resolution, while six others abstained from the vote.

This resolution is non-binding, and hence does not immediately compel government bodies, institutions of learning or international organizations to use maps other than those in current use.

Why Is Africa So Small on the Mercator Projection?

The problem involves the Mercator projection, a commonly used world map projection.

Developed by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator in 1569, the projection was originally intended to assist in navigation by explorers. While the Mercator projection is known to maintain directions well and is helpful for navigation, its main problem lies in its distortion of sizes of lands.

Lands that are closer to the poles are shown larger, while those near the equator are relatively small.

For example, Greenland looks about the same size as Africa on a Mercator projection. However, the actual land area of Africa is about 30.4 million square kilometers, whereas Greenland only occupies an area of 2.2 million square kilometers. Thus, Africa is 14 times larger than Greenland.

Equal Earth Map Projection

The Equal Earth projection map was designed by cartographers in 2018 as another map that will give a better representation of the relative areas of continents.

As opposed to the Mercator projection map, Equal Earth is an equal-area map projection because it gives a much more accurate representation of the real area of different regions.

54 member states of the African Union adopted the Equal Earth projection map in February, noting that it gives a much more accurate representation of the sizes of Africa and other continents.

It has thus become an important element of the #CorrectTheMap campaign, whose aim is to promote maps that give a true representation of the sizes of Africa and other continents.

Why Should People Care About the Map Dispute?

The supporters of the project explain why the problem is not only related to cartography.

Maps shape our perception of the world. When the same continent is depicted on the map as disproportionately smaller than other continents many times, this may automatically shape our perceptions of its real geographical size, natural resources, population and economy.

The African campaigners suggested that the traditional depiction was one of the reasons for the misperception of the continent. Kioko Muendo, a geographer from Kenya, also pointed out that maps can shape the political and economic perception of regions.

Robert Dussey, a minister of foreign affairs from Togo, is an avid supporter of the initiative stating that the world should be fairly represented on the map.

What Has France Stated Regarding the Mercator Projection?

France has equally supported the adoption of maps that portray the land mass of the world more accurately.

The French foreign minister Jean-Noël Barrot declared that the Ministry of foreign affairs will no longer use the Mercator map as changing a map does not change the world but correcting the distorted world map helps in understanding the world better.

The support of other countries that do not belong to Africa has increased the international visibility of this campaign.

Why Was The US Opposed to the Resolution?

The US had a different opinion.

Yaryna Ferencevych, the US representative, expressed their disagreement to the resolution before its voting stating that the UN general assembly should work on serious issues of international importance such as international peace, prosperity, and relation and not on map projection.

What Will Happen Next?

As the resolution is not binding, the vote will not automatically result in changing all maps in the world.

The importance of the vote is that it may motivate countries, educational organizations, international organizations, and cartographers to think about those projections that would present the continents better.

In the case of Africa, the debate can serve as a reminder of the true size of Africa and myths generated by traditional maps.