A map of Africa shown during a US State Department presentation at an international health conference in Brazil incorrectly placed and labelled every country on the continent, drawing attention from attendees and prompting widespread online discussion.
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The incident took place at the AIDS 2026 conference in Rio de Janeiro, where US officials were presenting updates on new health agreements. The slide appeared midway through the presentation and was later identified as containing multiple geographical errors.
Reuters, which reviewed video footage of the presentation, reported that the map contained an artificial intelligence watermark indicating it had been created using OpenAI tools. The company said it was investigating the report.
Countries shown in the wrong locations
The map misplaced multiple African countries. Nigeria, where the United States has several hundred troops deployed, was shown as a landlocked country in the Sahara Desert. Mozambique was relocated to the Horn of Africa, while Ivory Coast appeared on the opposite side of the continent.
Images of the slide were first shared by AIDS researcher Emily Bass on Substack before spreading across social media. One LinkedIn post featuring the map reportedly received around 40,000 views.
State department accepts responsibility
In a statement, the State Department said it accepted responsibility for the incident.
"We take full responsibility for the confusion and misrepresentation it caused for attendees, including our African partners," the department said.
The presentation was delivered by Jeff Graham, the senior US health official overseeing the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). He did not respond to requests for comment.
Despite the incident, the State Department said discussions at the conference remained "substantive and constructive" and reiterated its commitment to global efforts to combat HIV/AIDS.
