Channel management, a concept developed in marketing to refer to the process by which a product is moved from production to consumption, uses a channel of distribution operating at several levels, each responsible for one or more of the activities of moving the product forward to the consumer. The function of channel management is to select the most efficient channel, taking into account the environment, product, and consumer characteristics. When language is seen as a product, the learner as a consumer, and the various levels of government and educational administration as elements of the channel, the approach can be applied to language planning, of which English for Specific Purposes (ESP) should be seen as an integral part. The number of institutions from production to consumption indicates the length of a channel. The longer the channel, the more likely the planning goals are to be distorted or modified, unless links between the levels are maintained and effective feedback procedures exist for movement of information between and within levels. Application of the concept is illustrated with descriptions and evaluations of ESP programs in Tunisia. (MSE)