The United Nations General Assembly on Thursday approved a resolution to adopt a new world map that corrects the long‑standing distortion of the Mercator projection, showing Africa much larger and the United States, Russia and China considerably smaller. The move, backed by a majority of member states, is intended to present a "more accurate" representation of continental scales, according to the BBC and multiple other outlets.
UN vote and resolution
Delegates from more than 150 countries voted in favour of the resolution, which calls for the United Nations to replace the Mercator map with the new design in official publications and educational materials. The proposal, first championed by African nations, received broad support across the Global South and was endorsed by the UN’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs. CNN noted that the vote “makes our world look very different,” while Al Jazeera highlighted that the decision “reflects Africa’s true size.”
Map redesign details
The revised map, developed by cartographers using the Gall–Peters projection, expands Africa to roughly the same visual footprint as the United States, while shrinking the landmass of the United States, Russia and China by up to 30 percent compared with the Mercator view. Europe, Canada and the Arctic also appear reduced.
"The new map shows Africa as roughly the same size as the United States, rather than the one‑fifth size it appears on the Mercator projection," the BBC reported.The redesign aims to correct the historical bias that has under‑represented the Global South in textbooks and media.
France’s domestic response
In France, the adoption of the new map has become the day’s leading news story, with national broadcasters such as TF1 Info and France 24 reporting that French ministries are preparing to replace existing Mercator‑based atlases in schools. French officials have confirmed that new cartographic standards will be issued for educational publishers, a step described by France 24 as “France drops Mercator maps as Africa pushes for truer world view.” The change is seen as part of a broader effort to modernise curricula and align French teaching materials with internationally accepted geographic standards.
French educators and politicians have welcomed the move as an opportunity to correct a “colonial legacy” embedded in classroom maps. While no specific French minister was named in the reports, the coverage emphasised that the decision aligns with public demand for more accurate geographic education.
Internationally, the resolution has been praised by African leaders as a symbolic victory for the continent’s visibility. Firstpost noted that the UN’s action “aims to show true scale of Africa & Global South,” while the Times of India highlighted the broader geopolitical implications of a map that recognises the size of previously under‑represented regions.
Critics, though not detailed in the available sources, have warned that changing a centuries‑old projection could cause confusion during the transition period. Nevertheless, UN officials have indicated that the new map will be phased in over the next two years, with updated charts to appear on the UN’s website and in official documents by early 2027.
The adoption marks a rare instance of the United Nations directly influencing global educational standards. As the new design rolls out, its impact on public perception of international power balances and on the way geography is taught in classrooms worldwide will be closely watched.
