Glossary

Trade and industry

IMMEX

Mexico's export-manufacturing program that lets plants import inputs duty-free to make goods for export; the basis of the maquiladora industry.

Maquiladora

An export-assembly and manufacturing plant, typically foreign-owned, producing goods for export (electronics, medical devices, and aerospace in Baja California).

Nearshoring

Relocating manufacturing closer to the end market (here, to the US border) to shorten supply chains.

TEU

Twenty-foot equivalent unit, the standard measure of container-shipping volume, used for Port of Ensenada throughput.

ASIPONA Ensenada

The port authority operating the Port of Ensenada.

Binational commuter

A Baja California resident who lives in Mexico and commutes to work in Southern California.

Cali Baja

The branding for the binational San Diego-Tijuana / Baja California megaregion.

Data and agencies

PIBE

Producto Interno Bruto por Entidad Federativa, Mexico's state-level GDP measure (from INEGI).

INEGI

Mexico's national statistics institute (GDP, labor, and demographics).

IMSS

Mexican Social Security Institute; IMSS registration is a common proxy for formal employment.

SIAP / SADER

Mexico's agricultural information service and agriculture ministry (farm production and value).

CONAPESCA

Mexico's national fisheries and aquaculture commission.

SECTUR

Mexico's tourism ministry.

Places and culture

Valle de Guadalupe

Baja California's wine region near Ensenada, source of about 70% of Mexican wine.

Baja Med

The homegrown Baja California cuisine blending Mexican and Mediterranean styles; the basis of the region's Michelin recognition.

Bluefin tuna ranching

Capturing wild bluefin tuna and fattening them in offshore pens; Baja California, off Ensenada, is Mexico's center for this fishery.

SCORE / Baja 1000

SCORE International runs the premier off-road desert racing championship in Baja California, including the Baja 1000.