Purchasing power: West Indians on the front line facing the high cost of living

This text corresponds to part of the transcription of the report above. Click on the video to watch it in full. At the spice market in Pointe-à-Pitre (Guadeloupe), the atmosphere is gloomy.

In the deserted aisles, Janine Thomas waits for customers. “There are no people to buy. There is no money.

There are no more people. I work for ten euros, six euros,” she explained to us. For the salespeople, as for the customers, life has become far too expensive.

“Before, I bought a chicken, I made one meal. I know that life is expensive, so I make two meals. Now, you have to count everything.

You have to count everything before spending, before opening your wallet. You have to calculate, will there be a little left for shopping tomorrow? ", confides a customer.

Residents must make choices. This high cost of living denounced on every wall weighs on the daily lives of families. Once a month, Matthithia Antonius, a single mother, goes shopping in a large supermarket. His budget is tight and his choices radical.

She needs laundry detergent, but it's too expensive. “60 detergents for 25.55 euros. No,” she said, putting the product back on the shelf.

While our team followed her, she also had to give up buying cereal for her son. In Guadeloupe, food prices are 42% higher than in mainland France. For the only luxury, she allows herself two slices of ham.

“If there are no finances, we simply cannot eat meat,” she added. Nearly 90% of products are imported, such as fruits and vegetables. After classes, Matthithia leaves with an almost empty cart, she who lives in the countryside, in her mother's house with her sisters and her stepfather.

There are seven people in total with only one salary, hers, which amounts to 1,600 euros for this civil servant obliged to count everything: "When we receive the salary, when we do the calculations by month, we realize that we have nothing left if we do not manage to the nearest cent. "Unemployment and lack of water, the daily life of GuadeloupeansFor her part, Matthithia's mother is unemployed, like 17% of Guadeloupeans. This is twice as much as in mainland France.

A maintenance worker, she cannot find work. “Here, to find work, you have to know someone very well, a good friend, a good friend. Finally, you have to be sponsored,” explains Dina Antonius.

In Guadeloupe, many families are also faced with another problem: no water at the tap, sometimes for weeks, so they have to stock up and buy bottles of water, which generates an additional cost of around a hundred euros per month. “You have to have the means to buy it because the water pack, sometimes, I use to cook, I use it to take a shower, I use it to go to the toilet, so it’s not easy,” explains Matthithia. Local initiatives to cope with the rising cost of living To cope with the high cost of living, some favor the short circuit, like at a small local producers' market where we went to Les Abymes.

A couple of farmers sell their organic vegetables, which are very popular with customers. “It’s very affordable, it’s not too expensive and it’s local, it’s in her own garden that she grows,” says a customer. Two euros a bag with several lettuces.

It is three times cheaper than in the supermarket and than an imported product, because there is no intermediary. Production may be limited, but it remains interesting for farmer Netty Nannette. “It’s better for me because I have the money right away.

So we know that we went to the market, we have already collected the money, we can do our accounting right away. We know that we sold so much today,” she describes. In Guadeloupe, poverty affects twice as many people as in mainland France.

So, solidarity clearance sales where everything is free are multiplying. There you can find clothing, items donated by individuals and even food. Everyone tries to find what they need.

The association that manages this place of exchange is seeing new profiles appear. “More and more, there are also elderly people, isolated people too, who are in need, who do not have access. We often meet people who are working,” explains Céline Courtinard, of the Ti Raccon Goyave association.

For the moment, the protest remains limited, but in Guadeloupe, the cost of living is an explosive subject.

Machine-translated from French