The Mercator projection, a map that’s been around for over 450 years and which most people use, distorts size. It stretches land masses farther from the equator. It can make Greenland looks the same size as Africa, when in reality Africa is actually around 14 times bigger.
Campaigners want schools, organisations and governments to use a different one - the Equal Earth map. And now the African Union, which represents all 55 states on the continent, has endorsed the “Correct the Map” campaign.
The BBC’s Makuochi Okafor explains some of the arguments for switching to a different map and also the wider implications of showing Africa as smaller than it really is.
Moky Makura, from Africa No Filter, tells us what her organisation is hoping to achieve with the Correct the Map campaign. Plus Edwin Rijkaart, known to his YouTube subscribers as Geodiode tells us why we use the Mercator projection in the first place.
Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Benita Barden, Chelsea Coates and Abiona Boja Editor: Verity Wilde