Togo to ask UN member states to use map showing Africa's true size

LOME - Togo will ask United Nations member states to adopt a world map that more accurately reflects the true size of Africa and ditch the 16th-century Mercator projection, its foreign minister said.

Critics say the Mercator projection, which makes Greenland appear as big as Africa when in reality the continent is about 14 times larger, reinforces perceptions of Africa's marginality despite its vast size and population, shaping narratives in media, education and policy.

The African Union has tasked Togo with promoting a 'Correct The Map' campaign to end the use of the Mercator map by governments and international organisations.

The campaign, led by advocacy groups Africa No Filter and Speak Up Africa, calls for adoption of the 2018 Equal Earth projection, which tries to reflect countries' true sizes.

Created by cartographer Gerardus Mercator for navigation, the Mercator projection distorts continent sizes, enlarging areas near the poles like North America and Greenland while shrinking Africa and South America.

"The size we see of the African continent on the globe... is geographically inaccurate," Togo Foreign Minister Robert Dussey said in an interview with Reuters on Monday, calling for "scientific truth."

The Mercator projection is still widely used, including by schools and tech companies worldwide.

"Accurate representation is not just about maps - it is about agency, progress, and ensuring the world sees Africa as it truly is," said Moky Makura, executive director of Africa No Filter.

U.N. DRAFT RESOLUTION BEING PREPARED

Earlier this year, the AU adopted a resolution promoting the Equal Earth projection and encouraging its 55 member states to move away from the Mercator projection.

"The institutional challenge is to have a resolution passed by the United Nations General Assembly to validate this map," Dussey said. "It goes without saying that African countries are already receptive to this initiative."

Dussey said a draft resolution is being prepared, with a vote likely at the next UNGA in September. How countries vote would reveal their "true colours", he said.

The U.N. adopted last month an Africa-led resolution recognising slavery as the "gravest crime ​against humanity" and calling for reparations. All EU countries and Britain abstained, while the United States, Israel and Argentina voted against it.

-Reporting by Noel Kokou Tadegnon in Lome and Catarina Demony in London; Editing by Alexandra Hudson/Reuters