At the end of 2024, Martinique was rocked by an unprecedented wave of social protests. Demonstrations, roadblocks, fires, and economic losses: the purchasing power crisis revealed the depth of the discontent in Martinique over an economic model that had become unsustainable.
The signing of a memorandum of understanding on objectives and resources on October 16, 2024, paved the way for several corrective measures : Elimination of the dock dues on 54 product categories, a freeze on profit margins, and the elimination of VAT on certain items. On paper, these commitments are significant.
The latest report from the DGCCRF, published on July 10, 2025, is intended to be reassuring. It reports an average price decrease of 10.8 % on the products in question, and overall compliance with pricing commitments by the major retailers (CreO, GBH, Parfait, Safo).
But one crucial question remains: Do the people of Martinique really feel this decline in their daily lives?
The Reality on the Ground: Skepticism and Exasperation
Behind the numbers, another reality emerges: that of grocery prices that are still too high, of making ends meet earlier and earlier each month, and of precariousness that is taking root. The general feeling is that there is a disconnect between what is announced and real life. The reported 10 % decline is drowned out by a sea of inflation on other, unrelated products, by necessary expenses, and by low wages and pensions.
Frustration may turn to anger as back-to-school expenses loom.
In late December 2024, protests intensified. Several large retail stores were targeted. Fires damaged warehouses. Logistics networks were disrupted. The island experienced a sharp economic slowdown, with losses estimated at tens of millions of euros. Isn’t there a risk that this could happen again?
A Time for Political Decisions
Technical measures—as useful as they may be—are no longer enough to calm people down. The public isn't just looking for administrative price cuts on a few targeted products—it's calling for a change in the system, a challenge to the “counter-economy,” which relies on importing everything that is consumed, particularly food.
Minister of State Manuel Valls announced a bill to combat the high cost of living.
But this text can only be a just another Band-Aid if it doesn't address the root of the problem : the weakness of local production and the structural imbalances that condemn the overseas territories to economic powerlessness.
Parliamentary Accountability
The ball is now in our representatives' court. The vote on the upcoming law cannot be a mere formality. It must serve as an opportunity for a national debate on the structural inequalities between mainland France and its overseas territories. Martinique, like Guadeloupe, French Guiana, and Mayotte, can no longer settle for half-measures and watered-down promises.
What is at stake is not simply the price of a package of pasta or a liter of milk. It is the dignity of citizens, their right to a decent life, to healthy food, and to an economy that respects their land.
This requires a shift in economic policy, but also a shift in democratic policy. For without economic justice, there can be no lasting social peace. It is not a matter of silencing the anger, but of listening to the reasons behind it and responding with courage, clarity, and ambition. Martinique needs this.
Gérard Dorwling-Carter
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