The UN General Assembly votes to adopt a resolution supporting a world map that reflects Africa’s true size. The vote is led by a Togo-sponsored initiative and is framed around replacing older cartographic depictions that make Africa appear smaller than it is.
Outlets describe the issue as tied to the 16th-century Mercator projection, which some campaigners say portrays Africa as similar in size to Greenland and other regions despite differences in actual land area. The resolution is backed by Togo and supported by African Union member states in the campaign to “CorrectTheMap.” Multiple reports say the initiative aims for the new map to be adopted in educational settings, including by using the Equal Earth projection in schools.
Coverage is consistent that the United States is the only country to vote against the resolution. BBC reports that 164 nations back it, while other outlets emphasize the backing of African Union states but do not always give the full vote tally or specify the total number of supporters.
