Following the Corbière-Naminzo report on systemic inequalities, the Senate Delegation for Overseas Territories has published its twenty-one recommendations on the future of economic sectors. The assessment is accurate, and the approach advocated—differentiation—is the right one. But between the slogan and its substance, the text reveals a tension that Setback must appoint.
The starting point: «weak, unbalanced, and inadequate»
First and foremost, we must commend the honesty of the starting point. The Senate delegation based its work on a 2021 forecast by the French Development Agency, which predicted «sluggish, uneven, and insufficient» growth for the overseas territories by 2050. In other words: a thirty-year projection, with no sign of a spontaneous turnaround. Marie-Laure Phinera-Horth, a senator from French Guiana and co-rapporteur, draws the obvious conclusion—without a strategy, this growth will remain sluggish.
This finding is directly in line with the report of the commission of inquiry adopted on June 30, which concluded that economic convergence has not progressed for the past fifteen years. Two Senate bodies, two methods, one conclusion: the current model has run its course. The question is no longer whether the catch-up process is slow, but whether it is still underway.
Traditional Academic Pathways: The Twilight of a Model
The report paints a picture that the people of Martinique know all too well. The banana industry, which remains significant in Martinique and Guadeloupe, has been weakened by competition and fungal diseases. Sugarcane yields have plummeted over the past fifteen years. Finally, the fishing industry remains uncompetitive, relying primarily on small vessels.
This trio—bananas, sugarcane, and peaches—is not merely a portfolio of struggling industries. It is the productive backbone inherited from the plantation economy: a few low-value-added export products, exposed to competition from low-cost countries, whose markets and inputs are controlled from elsewhere. The commission of inquiry’s report had identified this as one of the «root causes» of systemic inequalities. Here we are at the heart of the’economies of scope : an economy whose structure has always been oriented toward the outside world—and toward a single external entity.
The data from French Guiana cited in the report illustrates this with striking clarity: in 2021, 0.8 % of the products entering French Guiana came from Brazil or Suriname, while 82 % of food products were imported from mainland France. An Amazonian territory of 84,000 km², bordering the world’s ninth-largest economy, sources its supplies from 8,000 kilometers away. No geographical factor explains this. Only history can explain it.
What the delegation is proposing
The twenty-one recommendations are organized around a few coherent themes.
– Financial engineering.
The report proposes exploring the creation of a public financial institution dedicated to financing overseas businesses, bringing together the Caisse des Dépôts, the AFD, and other government agencies. The idea deserves serious consideration: the current fragmentation of service providers is in itself a barrier to entry, and a one-stop shop with its own guiding principles would be a game-changer for SMEs in our overseas territories.
Support.
Strengthening technical, legal, and scientific support for businesses. Here again, the assessment is accurate: project engineering is the weak link, and entrepreneurs in the overseas territories spend more time preparing paperwork than actually producing goods.
Differential taxation.
Reorient and enhance tax incentives for investment toward sectors with a promising future, region by region. This is the practical implementation of the guiding principle set forth by Annick Girardin, former Minister for Overseas Territories.
Regional integration.
Strengthening regional synergies and «cooperation zones» to reduce import costs. Micheline Jacques, chair of the delegation, sums up the position: not to turn our backs on Europe, but to be able to source supplies from the nearby geographic region.
The’adaptation of European law.
This is likely the most effective aspect. The delegation advocates invoking Article 349 of the TFEU to adapt the rules on waste recycling, the carbon border adjustment mechanism, and extended producer responsibility. Progress has already been made on construction materials, and negotiations with the Commission are underway ahead of the adoption of the 2028–2034 multiannual financial framework.
«The only solution is to differentiate.»
— Annick Girardin, Senator from Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, former Minister for Overseas Territories
Formula in which ANTILLA can only note this with satisfaction: it is, word for word, the position that the Territorial Collectivity of Martinique has been advocating for years in the debate on the powers granted under Article 73.
A Thorn in the Side: The Mining Code
Yet, amid these measures, there is one recommendation that comes as a surprise. The report calls for an amendment to the mining code to revive hydrocarbon exploration, particularly in French Guiana. The Senate had passed a bill to that effect on January 29, 2026; the National Assembly rejected it in June.
Let’s recap what this is all about. The so-called Hulot Law of December 30, 2017, established a phased phase-out of hydrocarbon exploration and production on national territory by 2040. Reopening this issue in the name of development in the overseas territories raises a fundamental question that the report does not address: Does economic diversification consist of replacing one monoculture with another?
Because the «overseas preference» argument backfires here. An offshore oil industry in French Guiana would be operated by international majors, financed by foreign capital, with its production destined for foreign markets and its tax regime negotiated in Paris. Structurally speaking, this is not a departure from the “foreign-dependent economy”—it is simply its geological version. The fact that the same report also documents the climate vulnerability of our territories—the cost of which has just been brought home by Hurricane Chido and the water crises—adds to the unease.
The point here is not to settle a debate that is primarily a matter for the people of French Guiana. The point is to note that «differentiation» is not a value in and of itself: it all depends on what is being differentiated and for whose benefit.
What the Report Doesn't Say
The first omission concerns profit margins. The report discusses production at great length but says very little about distribution. However, the commission of inquiry into retail margins and Opinion No. 26-A-1 of the Competition Authority have established that the integration of retailers into large, diversified conglomerates increases profitability to an extent that is difficult to estimate. Local production cannot be revived without addressing the issue of shelf space access and value capture downstream. This issue must be thoroughly examined.
The second issue concerns land. Diversifying agricultural sectors requires available land and farms that can be passed down through generations. The report by the commission of inquiry, for its part, calls for a special land law to be enacted by 2040 and for the strengthening of the SAFERs. Without resolving land tenure issues—such as joint ownership, land titling, and «fifty geometric steps»—“food sovereignty” will remain nothing more than a conference slogan.
The third issue concerns the dock dues. No domestic production strategy can succeed without tariff protection measures, and the ongoing reform of this system will be the key determinant. A report on the future of these industries that fails to address this issue overlooks its most powerful lever.
TWO SENATE REPORTS, THE SAME CONCLUSION
Commission of Inquiry on Systemic Inequalities (Malet / Corbière Naminzo, June 30, 2026): 63 recommendations, including a 2028–2041 framework and programming law aligned with two European multiannual financial frameworks, a special land law to be enacted by 2040, and a Special General Office for Multidisciplinary Coordination (SGOM) reporting to the Prime Minister.
Senate Delegation for Overseas Territories (Jacques / Girardin / Phinera-Horth): 21 recommendations on the future of these sectors—a dedicated public financial institution, investment tax regimes tailored to each territory, regional cooperation zones, and invoking Article 349 of the TFEU.
The point of convergence: uniform treatment leads to underdevelopment. The point of divergence: the first commission traces the causes back to colonial and historical factors; the second focuses solely on policy tools.
For Martinique: Turning Words into Skills
What remains is the essential point, from a Martinican perspective. Two Senate reports released within a month both reach the same conclusion: a one-size-fits-all approach leads to underdevelopment, and differentiation is the only way forward.
This conclusion, reached by a former minister for overseas territories and a bipartisan delegation, is no longer an activist demand. It has become an institutional reality.
It is now up to local governments to translate this into effective authority. The State-CTM framework agreement of July 1, 2026, the Corsican constitutional amendment of June 23, Corsica’s associate membership in CARICOM, and the negotiation of the 2028–2034 multiyear financial framework—together present a window of opportunity. It will not remain open for long.
Legal scholars distinguish between statutory law and case law. When it comes to overseas development, we should also consider the law recommended — that middle ground where, for decades, well-reasoned reports and plans that never came to fruition have been piling up. Twenty-one more recommendations. The issue is not their quality, which is undeniable. The question is who, in 2027, will have the will and the power to enshrine them in law.
Gérard Dorwling-Carter
