MARTINIQUE - Economy
GDP per inhabitant in Martinique is the highest of the four overseas départements. It amounted to 63% of the national average in 1997. Between 1993 and 1997 GDP grew more quickly than in metropolitan France. On the national scale Martinique accounted for 0.4% of France?s GDP in 1997.
The services sector generates 80% of Martinique?s GDP
The economic fabric of the island continues to be made up especially of small businesses. It is specialised in the tertiary sector which generates 80% of value-added, and of which a large proportion is made up of non-market services and wholesale and retail trade.
- Production is dominated by small enterprises and this is associated with a production structure where industry plays a fairly minor role. The remoteness of supply and export markets increases costs and endangers stocks. In addition, the domestic market is small, so that large-scale industrial production is difficult if not impossible. In 2001 the proportion of small and medium sized businesses (employing between 20 and 99 people) accounted for 91% of all establishments working in industry, and employed 64% of the industrial workforce of Martinique.
- Martinique has a tradition of dynamic entrepreneurs whose interests have extended well beyond the island (particularly to Guadeloupe and French Guiana). The rate of creation of businesses (11% of the total number of enterprises operating in 2001) matches the national average. 74% of these are business start-ups; this share is much higher than the national average (65%).
Agriculture only accounts for 4% of value-added
Martinique's economy has long been linked to the exploitation of tropical produce. The north is very rural in character, with large plantations of bananas, pineapples and other fruit, vegetables and flowers. Traditional agriculture has its protected outlets but is nevertheless prone to climatic hazards such as cyclones and to competition from the ACP countries. 35% of the territory of Martinique is agricultural land. Despite being reduced now to 4% of the island?s value-added, agriculture still produces more than 300 000 tons of bananas, and thanks to sugar cane production the island?s famous rum. Farms are predominately geared to arable farming with 28% of agricultural land used for growing bananas, 12% for vegetables, and 10% for sugar cane. Fruit orchards (mainly for citrus fruits) cover less than 2% of the agricultural land. 37% of the agricultural land is pasture, with 32% of farm geared to stock rearing. In 2000 there were only 8 039 farm holdings left. Most of these are small, with 86% of farms covering less than 5ha.
The agri-food industry dominates the generally modest industrial apparatus. Notably it supplies the substantial exports to Guadeloupe, but exchanges with the rest of the Caribbean remain weak. In 1997 industry accounted for 8.6% of Martinique?s value-added, and construction for 6.4% compared to 7.3% in 1995. The construction industry, propped up by orders from the public sector is recovering after a fall at the beginning of the nineties.
The island's flora, as abundant as it is colourful and varied, the climate and the contrasting scenery attract tourists in large numbers. Martinique has built up a diversified and high-quality tourist infrastructure, particularly hotels and restaurants. Martinique had an estimated 117 hotels in 1999, with a capacity of 5 112 bedrooms. In 1999 nights spent in hotels amounted to 1.7 million. Tourism after having increased, encouraged by the tax exemption measures on investment, has been stagnating since two years now. The difficulties are in part linked to those of certain airline companies. Already started in 2000, the decrease in passenger traffic at the airport of Fort-de-France was confirmed in 2001. With its obvious potential for tourism, Martinique, without a doubt did not benefit yet from all its assets, for example the Eco-tourism market.
Martinique ranks second among the overseas départements of France in terms of air passenger traffic, with over 1.5 million passengers departing and arriving in 2001 and in terms of sea passengers with 857 000 passengers in 2000. Martinique ranks third among the overseas départements of France in terms of air cargo (15 400 tons in 2001) and sea freight (over 2.8 million tons in 2000).
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