Di African Union dey support one campaign wey wan stop di use of di 16th-century Mercator map by goments and international organisations. Dem wan make dem use map wey show Africa true size.

Di Mercator map, wey one cartographer, Gerardus Mercator, create for navigation, dey make continents size no balance. E dey make places near di poles like North America and Greenland big pass, but e dey make Africa and South America small, na wetin Reuters news agency tok.

"E fit look like say na just map, but for real life, e no be so," na wetin AU Commission deputy chairperson, Selma Malika Haddadi, tok give Reuters. She explain say di Mercator map dey give false impression say Africa no too get weight, even though na di second-biggest continent for di world, wey get 54 countries and over one billion people.

She still add say dis kind stereotype dey affect media, education, and policy.

Di Mercator map don dey get criticism since tey-tey, but di 'Correct The Map' campaign wey advocacy groups like Africa No Filter and Speak Up Africa dey lead don bring di matter come back. Dem dey push make organisations begin use di 2018 Equal Earth projection, wey dey try show countries true size.

"Di current size of di map of Africa no correct," Moky Makura, wey be executive director of Africa No Filter, tok. "Na di longest misinformation and disinformation campaign for di world, and e just gatz stop."

Fara Ndiaye, wey co-found Speak Up Africa, tok say di Mercator map dey affect di way Africans dey see demsef and di pride wey dem get, especially children wey dey see di map for school early.

"We dey work hard to promote curriculum wey go make di Equal Earth projection di main standard for all African classrooms," Ndiaye tok. She add say she dey hope say di map go also dey used by global institutions, including di ones wey dey Africa.

Haddadi tok say di AU don endorse di campaign because e dey align with di goal to "reclaim Africa rightful place for di global stage" as di call for reparations for colonialism and slavery dey grow.

Di AU go dey advocate make di map dey widely adopted and dem go discuss collective actions with member states, Haddadi add.

Di Mercator projection still dey widely used, including for schools and tech companies. Google Maps don switch from Mercator for desktop to 3D globe view since 2018, but users fit still switch back to Mercator if dem like. For di mobile app, di Mercator projection still be di default.

'Correct The Map' dey push organisations like di World Bank and di United Nations to adopt di Equal Earth map. One World Bank spokesperson tok say dem don dey use Winkel-Tripel or Equal Earth for static maps and dem dey phase out Mercator for web maps.

Di campaign tok say dem don send request to di UN geospatial body, UN-GGIM. One UN spokesperson tok say once dem receive am, dem go review and approve am through committee of experts.

Other regions dey support di AU effort. Dorbrene O'Marde, wey be Vice Chair of di Caribbean Community (CARICOM) Reparations Commission, support di Equal Earth map as rejection of di Mercator map "ideology of power and dominance".