LUSAKA, May 15 (Xinhuanet) -- First ladies from eight African countries will gather in Zambian capital Lusaka on May 20 to discuss how they can help fight the HIV/AIDS scourge, local newspaper Sunday Mail reported.

    Mirriam Nkunika, executive director of the Maureen Mwanawasa Community Initiative headed by Zambian First Lady Maureen Mwanawasa, said that first ladies from Mozambique, Rwanda, Gabon, Ghana, Burundi, Mali and Kenya will attend the conference.

    The one-day conference is being organized by the Organization of African First Ladies Against AIDS (OAFLA), which was formed by African first ladies in July 2002 in Geneva with the aim of increasing the capacities of first ladies in the fight against HIV/AIDS on the continent, Nkunika said.

    OAFLA President and Rwandan First Lady Jeannatte Kagame and first ladies from Ghana and Gabon have already confirmed their presence at the conference, the report said. Enditem