A technical overview alone would not describe the sense of urgency that many participants of the Mycotoxins in Foods in Africa workshop came to share during the week of November 6-10 1995 at IITA, Cotonou, Republic of Benin. Evidence is fast accumulating that people in much of sub-Saharan Africa are experiencing heavy dietary exposure to numerous food-borne mycotoxins. The high exposure levels appear to be having a profound effect on sociological and economic development in the continent. Reports from medical and agricultural research across the continent, painted a picture so alarming it was resolved that the issue of mycotoxins in foods in Africa must become a primary research and development target in the immediate future. This Proceedings of the Workshop on Mycotoxins in Food in Africa summarizes the information that was brought to the workshop and the conclusions that were drawn by the participants.