Millet marketing channels in many developing countries are not well developed. There are three main reasons: scattered and irregular supplies, large distances between producing areas and the main urban centres and limited demand in urban areas. Only 15-20 percent of the pearl millet produced in India, and perhaps 5-10 percent in Africa, enters the commercial marketing system. Moreover, although a number of developing countries have market intervention regulations to stabilize domestic millet prices, these regulations are effectively enforced in only a few countries. In several cases, the large year-to-year variations in the size of the harvest make it difficult for governments to provide adequate farm income support and simultaneously maintain adequate stocks in anticipation of lean years. Also, many governments do not include millet in their farm price-support programmes.
