The Minister of the Overseas () is the official in charge of the Ministry of the Overseas in the Government of the French Republic, responsible for overseeing Overseas France. The office was titled Minister of the Colonies (Ministre des Colonies) until 1946.

The position is currently held by Naïma Moutchou in the government of Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu with the title of Minister to the Prime Minister, in charge of the Overseas (Ministre auprès du Premier ministre, chargé des Outre-mer). She succeeded Manuel Valls on 12 October 2025.

Officeholders Minister of the Colonies (1894–1946) Minister Term of office Ernest Boulanger 20 March – 30 May 1894 Théophile Delcassé 30 May 1894 – 26 January 1895 Émile Chautemps 26 January – 1 November 1895 Pierre-Paul Guieysse 4 November 1895 – 29 April 1896 André Lebon 29 April 1896 – 31 May 1898 Gabriel Hanotaux 31 May – 28 June 1898 Georges Trouillot 28 June – 1 November 1898 Florent Guillain 1 November 1898 – 22 June 1899 Albert Decrais 22 June 1899 – 7 June 1902 Gaston Doumergue 7 June 1902 – 24 January 1905 Étienne Clémentel 24 January 1905 – 14 March 1906 Georges Leygues 14 March – 25 October 1906 Raphaël Milliès-Lacroix 25 October 1906 – 24 July 1909 Georges Trouillot 24 July 1909 – 3 November 1910 Jean Morel 3 November 1910 – 2 March 1911 Adolphe Messimy 2 March – 27 June 1911 Albert François Lebrun 27 June 1911 – 12 January 1913 René Besnard 12–21 January 1913 Jean Morel 21 January – 9 December 1913 Albert François Lebrun 9 December 1913 – 9 June 1914 Maurice Maunoury 9–13 June 1914 Maurice Raynaud 13 June – 26 August 1914 Gaston Doumergue 26 August 1914 – 20 March 1917 André Maginot 20 March – 12 September 1917 René Besnard 12 September – 16 November 1917 Henry Simon 16 November 1917 – 20 January 1920 Albert Sarraut 20 January 1920 – 29 March 1924 Jean Fabry 29 March – 14 June 1924 Édouard Daladier 14 June 1924 – 17 April 1925 André Hesse 17 April – 29 October 1925 Léon Perrier 29 October 1925 – 19 July 1926 Adrien Dariac 19–23 July 1926 Léon Perrier 23 July 1926 – 6 November 1928 André Maginot 11 November 1928 – 3 November 1929 François Piétri 3 November 1929 – 21 February 1930 Lucien Lamoureux 21 February – 2 March 1930 François Piétri 2 March – 13 December 1930 Théodore Steeg 13 December 1930 – 27 January 1931 Paul Reynaud 27 January 1931 – 20 February 1932 Louis de Chappedelaine 20 February – 3 June 1932 Albert Sarraut 3 June 1932 – 6 September 1933 Albert Dalimier 6 September – 26 October 1933 François Piétri 26 October – 26 November 1933 Albert Dalimier 26 November 1933 – 9 January 1934 Lucien Lamoureux 9–30 January 1934 Henry de Jouvenel 30 January – 9 February 1934 Pierre Laval 9 February – 13 October 1934 Louis Rollin 13 October 1934 – 24 January 1936 Jacques Stern 24 January – 4 June 1936 Marius Moutet 4 June 1936 – 18 January 1938 Théodore Steeg 18 January – 13 March 1938 Marius Moutet 13 March – 10 April 1938 Georges Mandel 10 April 1938 – 18 May 1940 Louis Rollin 18 May – 16 June 1940 Albert Rivière 16 June – 12 July 1940 Henry Lémery 12 July – 6 September 1940 Charles Platon 6 September 1940 – 18 April 1942 René Pleven (Commissaire) 24 September 1941 – 28 July 1942 Jules Brévié 18 April 1942 – 26 March 1943 Hervé Alphand (Commissaire) 28 July – 17 October 1942 René Pleven (Commissaire) 17 October 1942 – 10 September 1944 Henri Bléhaut 26 March 1943 – 20 August 1944 René Pleven 10 September – 16 November 1944 Paul Giacobbi 16 November 1944 – 21 November 1945 Jacques Soustelle 21 November 1945 – 26 January 1946

Minister of the Overseas (1946–present) Minister Term of office Marius Moutet 26 January – 23 December 1946 Auguste Laurent 23 December 1946 – 22 January 1947 Marius Moutet 22 January – 22 October 1947 Paul Coste-Floret 22 October 1947 – 29 October 1949 Jean Letourneau 29 October 1949 – 3 July 1950 Paul Coste-Floret 3–12 July 1950 François Mitterrand 12 July 1950 – 11 August 1951 Louis Jacquinot 11 August 1951 – 8 March 1952 Pierre Pflimlin 8 March 1952 – 8 January 1953 Louis Jacquinot 8 January 1953 – 19 June 1954 Robert Buron 19 June 1954 – 20 January 1955 Jean-Jacques Juglas 20 January – 23 February 1955 Pierre-Henri Teitgen 23 February 1955 – 1 February 1956 Gaston Defferre 1 February 1956 – 13 June 1957 Gérard Jaquet 13 June 1957 – 14 May 1958 André Colin 14 May – 9 June 1958 Bernard Cornut-Gentille 9 June 1958 – 8 January 1959 Robert Lecourt 5 February 1960 – 24 August 1961 Louis Jacquinot 24 August 1961 – 8 January 1966 Pierre Billotte 8 January 1966 – 30 May 1968 Joël Le Theule 30 May – 10 July 1968 Pierre Messmer 25 February 1971 – 7 July 1972 Bernard Stasi 2 April 1973 – 27 February 1974 Bernard Pons 20 March 1986 – 10 May 1988 Louis Le Pensec 23 June 1988 – 29 March 1993 Dominique Perben 29 March 1993 – 18 May 1995 Jean-Jacques de Peretti 18 May – 7 November 1995 Brigitte Girardin 7 May 2002 – 2 June 2005 François Baroin 2 June 2005 – 26 March 2007 Hervé Mariton 26 March – 19 June 2007 Michèle Alliot-Marie 19 June 2007 – 23 June 2009 Brice Hortefeux 23 June – 6 November 2009 Marie-Luce Penchard 6 November 2009 – 10 May 2012 Victorin Lurel 16 May 2012 – 2 April 2014 George Pau-Langevin 2 April 2014 – 30 August 2016 Annick Girardin 17 May 2017 – 6 July 2020 Sébastien Lecornu 6 July 2020 – 20 May 2022 Yaël Braun-Pivet 20 May – 25 June 2022 Élisabeth Borne (acting) 25 June – 4 July 2022 Jean-François Carenco 4 July 2022 – 20 July 2023 Philippe Vigier 20 July 2023 – 8 February 2024 Marie Guévenoux 8 February – 21 September 2024 François-Noël Buffet 21 September – 23 December 2024 Manuel Valls 23 December 2024 – 12 October 2025 Naïma Moutchou 12 October 2025 – present

See also Archives nationales d'outre-mer, Aix-en-Provence

References

Further reading Robert Aldrich. Greater France: A History of French Overseas Expansion. Macmillan (1996) pp109–114

External links Rulers: France. Ministries, political parties, etc. from 1870: Overseas Ministers (Colonies), Rulers.org Les Ministres de l'Outre-Mer sous la Vème République. Ministère de l'Outre-Mer outre-mer.gouv.fr. L'administration centrale du Ministère de l'Outre-Mer: Ministère de l'Outre-Mer outre-mer.gouv.fr. L'histoire du Ministère de l'Outre-Mer Ministère de l'Outre-Mer outre-mer.gouv.fr.