| Rank | Heat | Nation | Athletes | Time | Notes |
| 1 | 2 |  South Africa | Pieter Smith, Ofentse Mogawane, Ockert Cilliers, L.J. van Zyl | 3:05.57 | Q |
| 2 | 2 |  Botswana | Ompehmetse Mokgadi, Isaac Makwala, Onalenna Baloyi, Zacharia Kamberuka | 3:06.51 | Q |
| 3 | 2 |  Mauritius | Jean François Degrace, Fernando Augustin, Eric Milazar, Antonio Vieillesse | 3:07.48 | Q |
| 4 | 2 |  Ethiopia | Zemenu Kassa, Anteneh Getachew, Tamrat Tekle, Bereket Desta | 3:08.18 | q |
| 5 | 1 |  Nigeria | Noah Akwu, Victor Isaiah, Segun Ogunkole, James Godday | 3:08.35 | Q |
| 6 | 2 |  Kenya | Julius Bungei, Thomas Musembi, Jackson Kivuva, George Kwmoba | 3:08.44 | q |
| 7 | 1 |  Senegal | Mamadou Kasse Hanne, Nouha Badji, Mamadou Gueye, El Hadj Seth Mbow | 3:08.51 | Q |
| 8 | 1 |  Sudan | Rabah Yousif, Ismail Ahmed Ismail, Awad El Karim Makki, Abubaker Kaki | 3:08.88 | Q |
| 9 | 2 |  Ghana | Emmanuel Simpson, Issah Awudu, Alexander Atiso, Nathan Kpebah | 3:13.81 | |
| 10 | 1 |  Rwanda | Etienne Gashagaza, Moussa Bizimana, Innocent Hakuzimana, Emmanuel Ntakiyimana | 3:23.60 | |
| 11 | 1 |  Chad | Mahamat Kadre Moussa, Albeine Abbo Abdallah, Bourma Malato Ouya, Brahim Ouaddai | 3:28.43 | |
| 12 | 2 |  Democratic Republic of the Congo | Fidel Kitenge, Bob Nyamale, Papy Kibambe, Hugues Tshiynga | 3:31.27 | |
| 13 | 1 |  Somalia | Abdalla Mohamed Hussein, Mohamed Ali Mohamed, Mohamed Ahmed Omar, Abdinasir Said Ibrahim | 3:34.78 | |
| 1 |  Cameroon | Joseph Ndongo Abomo, Serge Tcheuko, Idrissa Adam, François Belinga | DNF | |
| 2 |  Morocco | Hicham Frindi, Abdelkerim Khoudri, Marouane Maadadi, Younés Belkaifa | DNF | |
