Saint Martin launches process to create official institutional flag

MARIGOT--The Collectivité of Saint-Martin has officially launched the process to create an institutional flag that will represent the territory, its culture, and its identity.

The announcement was made on Wednesday, April 15, 2026, by President Dominique Démocrite Louisy, Third Vice President Valérie Damaseau, and Louis Mussington, President of the Culture Commission.

According to the Collectivité, Saint-Martin is moving forward with the initiative because, unlike many other Caribbean territories and French overseas communities, it has never had its own flag reflecting its unique identity and heritage. While the French tricolor remains the official flag of Saint-Martin, the proposed new flag is intended to serve as a representative symbol of the territory’s culture and history.

Officials explained that the new institutional flag will complement existing symbols and will not replace the French flag, the collective logo, or the emblem of Saint-Martin adopted in 2012.

Valérie Damaseau said the initiative is intended to fill a longstanding gap and create a symbol that Saint-Martiners can proudly carry at sporting competitions, cultural events, and other occasions, both within the territory and abroad.

The process will be carried out through a structured and participatory approach designed to involve the public at every stage. During May and June 2026, workshops and an online consultation will be organized to gather ideas and input from the population.

This will be followed by a public competition in August and September 2026 for the creation of the flag’s visual design. In October 2026, residents will be invited to vote for their preferred design, after which the selected sketches will be revealed to the public later that month as part of the final decision-making process.

The official adoption of the flag is expected to be presented to the Territorial Council in November 2026.

Once adopted, the new flag will serve a purely representative purpose, offering Saint-Martin an additional visual symbol of its identity while standing alongside the territory’s existing official emblems.

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