UN Backs ‘Correct the Map’ Campaign to Show Africa’s True Size
By Peace Erewunmi
The United Nations General Assembly has backed an African-led campaign to promote world maps that more accurately represent the size of continents, in a move spearheaded by Togo and supported by the African Union.
The resolution, adopted on Friday, passed with 164 countries voting in favour, six abstaining and the United States as the only country voting against it. It encourages governments, schools, international organisations and technology companies to consider equal-area projections such as the Equal Earth map.
The campaign seeks to address the distortions associated with the widely used Mercator projection, which makes regions closer to the poles appear disproportionately large while making areas around the equator, including much of Africa, appear smaller relative to their actual size.
Togo’s Foreign Minister, Robert Dussey, has described the initiative as more than a technical debate about cartography, arguing that maps influence how people understand the world and their place within it. Togo plans to update its school geography materials by the end of 2026 and encourage wider adoption across Africa and beyond.
The development has also renewed conversations about Africa’s enormous natural-resource potential. The Democratic Republic of Congo alone is estimated to possess untapped mineral resources worth about $24 trillion, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce.
However, Africa’s greatest potential extends beyond its natural resources. The continent’s ability to transform its mineral wealth into broad-based prosperity will depend heavily on the knowledge, creativity, skills and mindset of its people.
The “Correct the Map” campaign therefore represents more than a change in cartographic representation for many of its supporters. It has become a symbol of a wider call for Africans to challenge outdated perceptions, recognise the continent’s scale and potential, and pursue the institutional and mental shifts necessary to translate that potential into meaningful development.
As the campaign gains global attention, its broader message remains clear: a more accurate representation of Africa should be accompanied by a more accurate appreciation of what Africa and its people are capable of achieving.
