Nigeria, 163 Countries to Back UN Resolution for Larger Africa on World Map

Nigeria has joined 163 other nations in backing a UN resolution aimed at correcting world maps to more accurately reflect Africa's true size. The African Union-backed "Correct the Map" resolution passed in a 164-1 vote at the UN General Assembly, with six countries abstaining. The United States was the sole nation to vote against the resolution, while Estonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Moldova, Serbia and Ukraine abstained.

Africa, the world's second-largest continent, covers around 30 million square kilometres and is home to nearly 1.3 billion people. However, conventional maps like the Mercator projection have historically presented Africa as much smaller than it actually is. Togo led negotiations on behalf of the African Group, emphasizing that maps shape our understanding of the world and influence collective perceptions.

The resolution promotes using the Equal Earth projection and other equal-area maps to accurately represent the relative sizes of continents and countries. The United States argued that the General Assembly should focus on more pressing issues, while France promised to shift away from the Mercator projection on its official maps, making the country and others appear smaller relative to equatorial nations.