African Union criticises proportions on Mercator world maps

The African Union strongly criticises the widely used Mercator world map because it depicts Africa as significantly smaller than the continent actually is. Developed in the 16th century by Gerhard Mercator, this map distorts areas in such a way that countries and continents near the poles – such as Europe and North America – appear huge, while Africa and other regions near the equator are greatly reduced in size. As a result, Africa often appears only half as large as it really is, even though it is actually 14 times larger than Greenland.

This misrepresentation leads to a distorted perception of Africa on a global level and is seen by the African Union as marginalising the continent. Maps are not only geographical representations, but also influence power relations and the global image of regions. That is why the African Union, together with initiatives such as ‘Correct the Map’, is calling for the introduction of more realistic map projections, such as the ‘Equal Earth’ projection, which depicts proportions to scale.

A globe, on the other hand, depicts the Earth proportionally correctly, as it shows the Earth as a three-dimensional object. Only on a globe are the real sizes and proportions of the continents visible without distortion. The African Union sees the dissemination of a correctly proportioned image of the world as an important basis for adequately representing Africa's place and significance on the world stage.
The campaign aims to raise awareness of these distortions and to promote the use of a realistic world map in education, the media and politics in order to correct the historical and political injustice of previous map projections. This should strengthen Africa's self-confidence and global perception in the long term.

‘The true size of ...’ gives you a good sense of the actual proportions. Just click on the ‘The true size of’ button and move Greenland to the height of the equator or the Democratic Republic of Congo to the height of Greenland.

By the way, you can purchase the ‘modern’ globe shown in the video from us.