UN approves world map reflecting true size of Africa

Sean Sinico with AFP, Reuters

09/05/2026September 5, 2026

The UN General Assembly has voted to adopt a map that more accurately shows the size of the continents. Only the United States voted against the measure, which projects the country as smaller than on traditional maps.

Unlike a globe, a two-dimensional map can distort the actual sizes of the continents or their shapes and angleA yearslong push to change the default view of the Earth came to a vote at the United Nations General Assembly on Friday, with 164 countries in favor of a new map, the United States against it and six abstentions.

Known as the Equal Earth cartographic projection, the map "offers a more accurate representation of the sizes of continental landmasses and to this end is a relevant option for improving the accuracy of the cartographic representation of the world," according to the resolution, which was spearheaded by several African countries.

Togo's foreign minister, Robert Dussey, told the UN maps "shape our understanding of the world."

"They guide education, nourish the imagination, and influence collective perceptions," he said.

"They are, therefore, never neutral, when they present a distorted image of our planet, they risk perpetuating inaccurate representation that are passed down through generation."