This report summarizes the current state of START activities in Africa and provides a context for future actions. The purpose of this report is not only to provide a record of START activities in Africa, but also to identify and highlight contributions to the Earth System Science Partnership and to anticipate future challenges in charting a course for collaborative action on global change research in Africa. The report highlights the substantial achievements of START in Africa and elucidates the structure and operation of START effort in Africa to instill a culture of multidisciplinary research, scientific peer review and peer-reviewed publications.