17 January 2013, Johannesburg: A select team of 22 boys and girls from Alexandra township, today played a ‘Football Match for Peace’, ahead of the 2013 Orange Africa Cup of Nations in South Africa.

The children who are part of the Alexandra Football Association and who come from previously disadvantaged backgrounds in Alexandra Township, Gauteng province, have been selected to participate in the Make Peace Happen parade during the opening ceremony of the Orange Africa Cup of Nations on 19 January.

Since 2010, the African Union, under its Make Peace Happen campaign has used the universal appeal of football and adapted the positive qualities of the game such as teamwork, skills development and competitiveness to heal the bitter wounds of conflict, promote reconciliation and collaboration among communities and rally the continent around one goal, to end all forms of conflicts.

The AU, under the ongoing partnership with CAF is once again using the platform of Africa’s premier sporting extravaganza, the 2013 Orange Africa Cup of Nations in to refocus Africa’s attention on peace. The event was attended prominent personalities including AU’s Peace Ambassador, Oscar Pistorius popularly known as the blade runner who will deliver the peace torch that will be used to light the Flame of Peace during the tournament’s opening ceremony. Other key guests included the Secretary General of CAF, Hicham El Amrani, AU Commissioner for Social Affairs, Dr. Mustapha Kaloko and Ibrahim Mayaki, the CEO of New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD).

“Sport is a tool for development and football can contribute to Africa’s development.  The enthusiasm of the youth for football provided today a perfect opportunity to combine the game with educational measures and promote equality, inclusion, respect and responsibility through the use of football. As an instructor of Taekwondo, who introduced this sport in Niger in 1976, it is very gratifying for me to be part of this adventure”, said Dr Mayaki.

This year’s Africa Cup of Nations coincides with the celebration of the Golden Jubilee of the AU’s antecedent the OAU and offers an opportunity for the African Union together with its partners to reflect on the achievements as well as the challenges of the past half-century and chart a better way forward towards a peaceful, prosperous and united future for Africa.

The event was organised with support from, NEPAD, OXFAM International, the African Centre for the Constructive Resolution of Disputes (ACCORD).