Africa’s Growth

Effort to stop "world's longest disinformation campaign"

A campaign to urge people to stop using the Mercator world map is underway, Reuters reports.

The map distorts the true size of the continents by magnifying areas near the South and North Poles while shrinking Africa and South America.

The 16th-century Mercator map was created by Gerardus Mercator for navigation. The map has been criticized in the past, but the "Correct the map" campaign by the advocacy groups Africa No Filter and Speak Up Africa has revived the debate.

"It is the world's longest disinformation campaign, and it simply must end," Moky Makura, executive director of Africa No Filter, told the news agency.

Google Maps switched from Mercator on computers in 2018, but users can still switch back to Mercator. However, the Mercator map is still the default in the mobile app.

African Union: It’s More Than Just a Map

The African Union is behind a campaign to get more people to stop using Mercator world maps because the image distorts the true size of the continents, Reuters reports.

The AU says the campaign is in line with its goal of “restoring Africa’s rightful place on the global stage.”

“It may seem like just a map, but in reality it’s not,” Selma Malika Haddadi, vice chairwoman of the AU Commission, told Reuters.

The map enlarges the areas around the two poles while shrinking Africa and South America.

She says the map gives the wrong impression that Africa is “marginalized” despite being the world’s second-largest continent. An inaccurate map affects the media, education and politics, according to Selma Malika Haddadi.