It almost certainly originated in tropical western Africa, where the greatest number of both wild and cultivated forms occurs. The height of the pearl millet plant may range from 0.5 to 4 m and the grain can be nearly white, pale yellow, brown, grey, slate blue or purple. The ovoid grains are about 3 to 4 mm long, much larger than those of other millets, and the 1 000-seed weight ranges from 2.5 to 14 g with a mean of 8 g. The size of the pearl millet kernel is about one-third that of sorghum. The relative proportion of germ to endosperm is higher than in sorghum.
More information is available on finger millet than on any of the others.
Minor millets account for less than one percent of the foodgrains produced in the world today. Thus they are not important in terms of world food production, but they are essential as food crops in their respective agro-ecosystems. They are mostly grown in marginal areas or under agricultural conditions where major cereals fail to give sustainable yields. It is an important staple food in parts of eastern and central Africa and India. It is the principal cereal grain in northern and parts of western Uganda and northeastern Zambia.