The United Nations General Assembly voted on Friday to adopt a new world map that makes the African continent bigger. While shrinking North America and Europe.
Aimed at “a more accurate representation” of continental landmasses, the resolution was supported by 164 countries while United States voted against it and six other states abstained.
The new map – known as the Equal Earth cartographic projection improves “the accuracy of the cartographic of the representation of the world,” the resolution said.
It urges member states to use the new map in place of the traditional Mercator Projection, which was designed for maritime navigation by Flemish cartographer Gerardus Mercator in 1569.
Foreign Minister Robert Dussey of Togo, which sponsored the resolution, said maps “guide education, nourish imagination, and influence collective perceptions.”
“They are therefore never neutral, when they present a distorted image of our planet, they risk perpetuating inaccurate representation that is passed down through generations.
France – which co – sponsored the resolution in support of the new map – announced Friday that it would abandon the Mercator projection.
The United States however slammed the resolution, saying such moves are “the reason this institution is losing its credibility.
A group of cartographers launched the Equal Earth projection in 2018. It makes Africa, Latin America, South Asia and Oceania appear much larger.
The initiative comes as France is seeking to improve relations with Africa, particularly in former colonies with which it has prickly ties.
SOURCE: @ AFP
