On the same day, New Zealand will take on the debutant Japan, UAE will take on Canada and Australia will face West Indies.
In the group phase, Bangladesh will play against Scotland and Pakistan respectively on January 21 and 24 after the campaign opener against Zimbabwe.
The Young Tigers left Dhaka for South Africa on January 3, under the leadership of wicket-keeper batsman Akbar Ali and conducted a 10-day training camp there before the World Cup.
Sixteen teams, split in to four groups, will initially participate in the ICC U-19 global meet scheduled for South Africa from January 17 to February 9 with hosts South Africa taking on Afghanistan in the opening match on January 17 at Diamond Oval in Kimberley.
Holders India, Japan, New Zealand and Sri Lanka are placed in Group A, Australia, England, Nigeria and West Indies are in Group B. Bangladesh, Pakistan, Scotland and Zimbabwe are in Group C while Afghanistan, Canada, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates are in Group D.
After the group matches, the top two teams of each group will qualify for the Super League (quarter-finals) while the bottom two teams will have to play in Plate stage (quarter-finals).
The winners of Super League (quarter-finals) will advance to the semifinals while the winners of the Plate (quarter-finals) will qualify for the Plate semifinals.