UN votes for maps that show Africa's real size

On many world maps, Africa looks smaller than it really is. On September 4, the United Nations, where almost every country in the world meets, voted for a resolution^*1 to change this. The resolution asks countries to use maps that show the real size of each continent^*2.

The resolution is called "Correct the map." It says that the most common world map, the Mercator map, makes places near the equator^*3 look too small. Africa is one of these places, so people see it wrongly. The resolution asks for maps that show true sizes, especially the Equal Earth map, when people compare continents.

Togo, a country in Africa, proposed the resolution for the African countries. Togo's representative^*4 said that wrong maps affect schools, how people understand the world, and how they see the size of Africa. The representative also said, "A fair map does not change the world's geography^*5. It changes how we see the world."

In the vote, 164 countries said yes. One country, the United States, said no. Six countries did not vote yes or no: Estonia, Georgia, Lithuania, Moldova, Serbia and Ukraine.

Russia voted yes. It said the resolution helps fix a problem left over from colonialism^*6. Ukraine did not vote yes or no. It said the map shows a part of Ukraine that Russia now holds in a way that Ukraine cannot accept. The United States voted no. Its representative said the resolution hurts trust in the United Nations and pushes for "reparations^*7." Ireland spoke for the European Union, a group of European countries. Ireland said it supports the goal of the resolution, but the resolution should only be about schools and teaching people geography.

The resolution passed. It now asks countries around the world to use maps that show real sizes more often.

1. *1 resolution: a written decision that a group of countries votes on
2. *2 continent: one of the world's very big areas of land, like Africa or Asia
3. *3 equator: the line around the middle of the Earth, halfway between the North Pole and the South Pole
4. *4 representative: a person who speaks for a country at a meeting
5. *5 geography: the study of the world's land, seas, countries and where things are
6. *6 colonialism: when a strong country takes control of another land and rules its people
7. *7 reparations: money or help given to make up for harm done in the past