Recently, Somalia’s then-rulers the Al-Shabaab militant group had outlawed all sport and used the capital city Mogadishu’s main sports arena to stage executions.
Fast forward to this week, and Waaxda 5 are playing Waaxda 1 and the reaction of the crowd is no different to any you would see at a football match anywhere else in the world.
This football match is part of the African Union Mission in Somalia peacekeepers initiative for community engagement exercise amongst the youths and the local administration as they seek to strengthen peace and stability in the country through sports.
AMISOM recently received 4500 footballs from the One World Futbol Project through the United Nations Support Office for AMISOM.
Organizers say that this is a major step to stabilizing the country that has been deeply affected by numerous attacks from the Al Shabaab.
Somalia’s Ministry of Youth and Sports, along with AMISOM are aiming to use the sport to help unite the country, while also targeting national development in the Horn of Africa
