President of the Eritrean National Football Federation (ENFF), Abraham Esayas has said hosting a Cecafa tournament after nine years means a lot for Eritrea as a country.

The first ever U-15 Challenge Cup hosted in Africa which kicked off on August 16^th and ends August 30^th is taking place at the Asmara National Stadium with ten countries taking part.

Esayas told Cecafafootball.com during an interview on Wednesday that hosting the tournament is not only significant on the footballing side, but also for the good integration of all Cecaf member countries. “It is good that members of Cecafa are now feeling the peace prevailing in Eritrea,” added Esayas.

He made it clear that the peace agreement the governments of Eritrea and Ethiopia has opened more doors for football development and other social, political and economic aspects.

“We are also greateful to the leadership of Cecafa for having trust in us to be able to host this tournament which the region is using to develop and expose the young players.

Eritrea had last hosted a Cecafa tournament in 2010. Nicholas Musonye, the Cecafa Secretary General also praised the ENFF for the good level of organization despite some challenges. “We are having a good tournament,” added Musonye.