ABSTRACT
P earl millet is, along with sorghum, the staple food for a significant part of the population in Africa and the Indian subcontinent. It is the cereal most tolerant to drought; it is cultivated in the Sahel, in zones where rainfall is no more than 200 mm. For these reasons, the conservation, evaluation, and commercialization of genetic resources of pearl millet constitute a considerable task. Pearl millet is mostly cultivated in arid and semi-arid areas in Africa, where it covers 11.5 million ha, and in India, where it covers 14.7 million ha (FAO, 1996).
