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As part of New Caledonia’s process of negotiated decolonization, the Noumea Agreement has explored the path to a new model of sovereignty, recognizing that the sovereignty of the Kanak people is a prerequisite for the founding of a “new sovereignty, shared in a common destiny”. In the aftermath of the third referendum on the transfer of the last sovereign powers (12 December 2021), it seems important to analyse the emergence of this “shared sovereignty” and to question its content and its links with the notions of “decolonization” and “independence”. Then, following on from earlier work, we review the hypothesis of an emerging “islandian” sovereignty in New Caledonia and conclude by assessing the progress of the decolonization process. The originality of our approach lies in its multidisciplinary nature, combining law, politics and economics.