A joint initiative of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the Confederation of African Football (CAF) is using the popularity of football to spread a message of solidarity to end hunger in Africa.

The African Football Against Hunger initiative is stressing the commitment made by African leaders in 2014 to end hunger in the region by 2025, in sync with the UN zero Hunger campaign, and calling on African nations to unite against hunger.

“Eradicating hunger requires teamwork and perseverance — the same qualities that players in the Nations Cup show us on the field,” said José Graziano da Silva, FAO Director-General.

A video featuring a player juggling a football ball and marking a goal against hunger is currently being shown across the eight venues of the AFCON 2015, held in Equatorial Guinea between 16 January and 8 February, and using the tournament as a platform to inform and raise awareness of the initiative.

“Football brings together people from all over the continent and that makes it an ideal space to call for solidarity and bring people across Africa on board with our joint effort to raise the bar in the fight against hunger” explained Mario Lubetkin, FAO Director of Communications.

African Football Against Hunger is being held on the same two other initiatives are also looking to reach similar goals in the region, including: the UN Millennium Development Goals global partnership, established in 2000 to reduce extreme poverty and other related targets by 2015; and the international movement Action 2015, a worldwide initiative to further development in areas including poverty, climate change, discrimination an inequality.

“This is the time for governments, institutions and civil society on the continent to come together and double down on efforts to make hunger history,” Lubetkin said.