The tourist season is about to begin, and to promote the island, Martinique continues to be described as a tropical paradise. Admittedly, the scenery is magnificent. But behind the postcard image, daily life is more a matter of making ends meet. The island has European prices, yet incomes have never risen above the subsistence level.
Prices are skyrocketing, while wages are stagnating
INSEE and IEDOM confirm it: the cost of living is 7 to 12 % higher than in France. When it comes to food, the cost jumps by +38 %. Prices for hygiene and cleaning products have reached levels that would make a Parisian turn pale. Gas prices seem to fluctuate with the mood of the global market. Meanwhile, the median income remains stagnant at 1,110 € per month—an amount that, here, vanishes as quickly as a box of discounted crackers.
Freelancers: Heroism at a Bargain Price
People sing the praises of local entrepreneurship, but the reality is far less glamorous. Self-employed workers—artisans, shopkeepers, farmers, and independent professionals—earn a median of €959 per month. These same people are expected to drive economic diversification. But trying to diversify with €959 is like trying to fill a bathtub with a plastic spoon: admirable, but bound to lead to exhaustion.
Purchasing power is eroding, and dependence is taking root
Incomes are stagnating. Prices are rising. Social assistance programs provide a stopgap but do not solve anything. The result: the productive base is shrinking, while the economy relies more and more on public spending, government salaries, and social transfers. In other words, on everything except local production. As a result, society oscillates between silent resignation and outbursts of legitimate anger.
The real work that needs to be done
The only way out of this downward spiral is to revive local production, reduce logistics costs, provide real support to micro-businesses, and stop thinking that slogans can take the place of economic policy. Without that, Martinique will remain this curious paradox: a paradise where people struggle to fill their shopping carts. And, remarkably, everyone knows it… yet no one does anything about it. Elections come and go in a state of limbo, like moments when we fidget about without ever addressing the core issues, forgetting Aimé Césaire’s admonition to his people:
«… when will you finally stop being the dark plaything at someone else’s carnival …»
Gérard Dorwling-Carter
