The United Nations General Assembly voted on Friday to adopt a new world map that more accurately reflects countries' true sizes, a resolution sponsored by African states to right a centuries-old wrong. The 'Correct the Map' resolution aims to address a colonial-era injustice that has visually shrunk Africa for 450 years, shaping how the continent is perceived in media, education, and policy worldwide.
The resolution, put forward by African Union (AU) member states and the Bahamas, was backed by a vote of 164-1 with six abstentions. Togo led the AU's campaign to limit use of the widely-used Mercator map.
Developed in the 16th century by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator, the projection distorts the relative size of land masses by expanding those nearer the poles. For instance, it makes Greenland appear roughly the same size as Africa, even though Africa is about 14 times larger.
Some critics of the Mercator map believe it remains widely used because it visually exaggerates and centralizes Western nations, perpetuating ideas of European superiority. 'A fair world begins with a fair map,' Togo's Foreign Minister Robert Dussey told Reuters ahead of Friday's vote.
The resolution promotes the Equal Earth projection, which more accurately portrays the size of the continents. The resolution is not legally binding and it 'in no way challenges the use of the Mercator projection for maritime and aerial navigation, for which it remains fully suited,' the Togolese ministry said in a statement.
The United States – the only country to vote against the resolution – said it promoted an 'ideological agenda' and was a distraction from the 'genuine problems of international peace, prosperity or good relations.' France, which co-sponsored the resolution, announced it planned to abandon the Mercator map.
Moky Makura, executive director of advocacy organization Africa No Filter, hailed the vote, saying 'now the real work begins.' 'We want to see accurate maps in schools, textbooks, newsrooms, businesses and on the digital platforms billions of people use every day,' she said.
Togo hopes to change its school geography materials by the end of the year, Dussey told Reuters. He pledged to press other governments, schools, international organizations, and tech companies to move away from the Mercator map in favor of the Equal Earth one. 'The world is changing. Africa also is changing,' he added.
Source: www.aljazeera.com