Ghana a beat Uganda 1-0 in the opening Group D match at Port Gentil's new stadium on Tuesday. Andre Ayew tucked away the penalty to open the scoring in the 32nd minute and give Ghana a deserved lead after they had dominated the opening half.
The four-time African champions had to fight off a gutsy Uganda in the second half as the East Africans marked their return to the tournament after a 39-year absence with an impressive performance.
The penalty came after a moment of madness from Uganda centre-back Isaac Isinde, who took his eye off the ball as he received a pass in his own penalty area and lost possession to Asamoah Gyan, who he then tugged back to concede the spot-kick.
Uganda threw on attacking substitutes after the break and took the game to their more fancied opponents, who were runners-up at the last finals two years ago.
Uganda dominated the midfield and constantly probed without being able to break through, but left a good impression and will hope to test both Egypt and Mali in their next two matches.