🇿🇦 African Union Pushes to Scrap Mercator Map, Citing Africa’s Distorted Image

Lead: The African Union is championing a campaign to replace the 16th-century Mercator map, saying it shrinks Africa and fuels harmful global stereotypes.

Zig Diaries Environment
Date: Friday, 15 August 2025
Time: 12:40 WAT
Location: 📍 Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

The AU’s backing of the ‘Correct The Map’ initiative aims to reclaim Africa’s true geographical proportions in education, policy, and global perception.

The Mercator projection, created for navigation, exaggerates landmasses near the poles while diminishing Africa and South America. AU Deputy Chairperson Selma Malika Haddadi told Reuters the map portrays Africa as “marginal,” despite it being the world’s second-largest continent with over a billion residents.

The advocacy-led ‘Correct The Map’ campaign promotes the 2018 Equal Earth projection, which represents countries’ sizes more accurately. The AU says adopting this projection aligns with its goal of “reclaiming Africa’s rightful place on the global stage.”

Critics note that Mercator’s distortions influence education, media, and policy, affecting identity and pride, particularly among children. Campaigners call for Equal Earth to replace Mercator in African schools and for adoption by global institutions such as the UN and World Bank.

While Google Maps transitioned to a 3D globe on desktop in 2018, its mobile app still relies on Mercator. The World Bank said it is gradually phasing out the outdated projection.

The campaign has also gained support in the Caribbean, where regional leaders view Mercator as a relic of “power and dominance.”

Fact-Check & Background Context:
The Mercator map, devised in 1569 for maritime navigation, systematically enlarges areas near the poles while compressing equatorial regions. 

The Equal Earth projection was introduced in 2018 and preserves area proportions, making it a preferred tool for education and policy advocacy.

🏷️ Tags: African Union, Mercator Map, Equal Earth, Africa Geography, Education Reform
#ZigDiariesEnvironment #AfricanUnion #MercatorMap #EqualEarth #GeographyMatters