2023-12-08 16:06:26
By Le Figaro with AFP
Published 11 hours ago, Updated 1 hour ago
Serge Letchimy, president of the executive council of the Territorial Collectivity of Martinique. Charles Platiau / Reuters
The request from the local executive concerns “food products” and “health products and medicines”, while poverty is twice as high on the island as in mainland France.
The president of the executive council of the Territorial Collectivity of Martinique (CTM) on Thursday, December 7, asked the State to freeze the prices of basic necessities on the island where the high cost of living is a major social issue. Serge Letchimy, the head of the local executive, sent a letter to the prefect of the island of the Antilles to request “the implementation of articles L. 410-2 of the commercial code in order to block the prices of essential products in Martinique”. This request concerns “food products” et “health products and medicines”according to the letter.
Food, the prices of which were 40% higher in Martinique compared to France in 2022, according to INSEE, represents one of the main items of expenditure for Martinique households. These prices were up 7.6% year-on-year in October 2023 on the island. Health prices, which represent 12% of a Martinique household’s expenses, are also 13% higher than in mainland France, according to INSEE statistics. In his argument, the president of the Martinique executive highlighted the high level of poverty and precariousness in Martinique where 34,500 households benefit from the RSA. Some 27% of the population live below the poverty line, according to INSEE. Or a rate “2 times higher than the national average”recalls Serge Letchimy.
4% inflation in 2022, rising
The request from the head of the Martinique executive will be debated on December 21 in a plenary session of the Martinique Assembly. Questioned Thursday evening, the prefecture of Martinique had not yet formulated a response to the request of the leader of the territorial majority. Last July, the State and distributors concluded a new agreement concerning the quality-price shield (BQP), a system to combat inflation in the Overseas Territories. This system guarantees a moderate price for 134 products in supermarkets, around thirty more products than in 2022. Martinique had seen a resumption of inflation in 2022, of +4% over the year, driven by petroleum products (17.8%) and food (5.4%). This index, however, remains at a level lower than for France as a whole (+5.2%) over the period.
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