Nairobi — National women's football team Harambee Starlets will start their journey towards qualification for the 2024 Africa Women's Cup of Nations with a trip away to giants Cameroon in the first round.

Starlets play the Indomitable Lionesses away from home in the first leg, before hosting them for the return fixture in Nairobi.

A win against the three-time WAFCON bronze medalists will earn them a place in the second and final qualification round, where a date against either Gabon or Botswana awaits them.

Starlets have been inactive internationally since their 2022 WAFCON qualification match against South Sudan in Nairobi. They were to face Uganda, but the game was called off as Kenya stared suspension from world governing body FIFA.

They had been scheduled to play a friendly match against Albania in March, but the game was cancelled due to difficulty in travel logistics.

CAF will release the dates for the qualifiers, but Kenya's Starlets have their work cut out.

Meanwhile, last year's finalists, winners South Africa have been exempted from the first round. Zambia, who finished third, have also been exempted as Morocco, who finished second have an exemption as hosts.

There will be 40 teams involved in the first round. The 20 winners will join Zambia and South Africa in round two and the 11 winners from this round join hosts Morocco for the final tournament.

Neighbors Uganda, who qualified for the last edition take on Algeria, Tanzania travel away to Ivory Coast, Rwanda hosts Ghana, Sudan travel away to Angola, South Sudan start away to Egypt, while Ethiopia and Burundi will clash in an Eastern Africa derby.

Djibouti will meanwhile face Togo.