The first round of qualifiers for the 2018 African Nations Championship (CHAN) will take place later this month with four sides from the COSAFA region in action.

Madagascar will host Malawi in Antananarivo on April 23 in the first leg of their tie, with the return set for Lilongwe six days later.

Malawi have lined up a friendly international with Kenya in Machakos on April in preparation for the tie, which is likely to be closely fought.

Madagascar were last in action in March when they defeated Sao Tome e Principe in the qualifiers for the 2019 African Nations Cup.

The winner of the tie will face Mozambique in the next round of the qualifiers that take place in July.

Mauritius host Seychelles in the other first round tie, a fascinating clash between the two islands nations.

Mauritius were stunned by Comoros in the preliminary round qualifiers for the 2019 Nations Cup last month, while Seychelles have not played a full international since losing 2-1 to Ethiopia in their final qualifier for the 2017 Nations Cup last September.

The winner of this tie will take on Angola in the next stage in July.

The CHAN competition is open only to players who ply their trade in their domestic leagues.