Mexicali, Baja, Mexico

🇲🇽 Mexicali is the capital city of the Mexican state of Baja California and seat of the Municipality of Mexicali. The City of Mexicali is at the core of the wider metropolitan area. The city and metropolitan area the second most populous in Baja California.

Mexicali's economy has been historically based on agricultural products, and they remain a large sector of the economy. However, its economy has gradually gone from being agricultural to include industry, mainly maquiladoras—duty-free factories in which parts from the United States are imported, assembled, and then returned to the United States as finished products. International companies including Honeywell, GKN Aerospace, Kellogg's, Gulfstream, UTC Aerospace Systems, SunPower, Rockwell Collins, LG Electronics, National Oilwell Varco, Mitsubishi, Autolite, Nestlé, Coca-Cola, Robert Bosch, and Goodrich Corporation have built maquiladora plants in the city.

Mexicali became the national centre for the aerospace industry in Mexico when Rockwell Collins established an operation there in 1966. Rockwell Collins is the oldest company under the maquiladora program nationwide.

Founded on March 14, 1903, Mexicali is situated on the Mexico–United States border adjacent to its sister city Calexico, California, with which it forms a dual-state, international population centre, Calexico–Mexicali.

Economy In its beginnings Mexicali was an important centre for cotton production for export, until synthetic fabrics reduced the worldwide demand for the fiber. Currently, horticulture is the most successful agricultural activity with scallion (green onion), and asparagus being among the most important crops. Cotton and wheat are still grown, but low government price guarantees and subsidies make wheat farmer protests an annual event. There is an annual agri-business fair, which if unfunded by the government, would have been dead a decade ago, named AGROBAJA, Agrobaja in March of every year, drawing people by the thousands, from all over Mexico and before the crisis, from the United States.

The current prospects for economic growth in Mexicali rely on in-bond and assembly plants (maquiladoras), which come due to low wages and loose worker right laws, include companies like, Selther, Daewoo Electronics, Mitsubishi, Honeywell, Paccar, Vitro, Skyworks Solutions, CareFusion, Bosch, Price Pfister, Gulfstream, United Technologies Corporation, Kenworth, Kwikset and Collins Aerospace. Mexicali is also home to many food processing plants such as Nestlé, Jumex, Bimbo, Coca-Cola, Kellogg's, and Sabritas. In December 2018 there were 180 in all, employing 70,000 people.

Tourist Industry Mexicali also relies on tourism as a medium to generate revenue, and visitors cross by foot or by car from Calexico, United States, every day. Tourists are mainly attracted to local taco stands, restaurants, pharmacies, bars and dance clubs. Near the border, in walking distance, there are many shops and stalls selling Mexican curios and souvenirs. Arizona and Nevada residents look for medical and dental services in Mexicali, since they tend to be less expensive than in the United States. Pharmacies sell some drugs without a prescription and at much lower cost than in the US, but some medications still require a doctor's prescription, although several accessible doctor offices are located near the border as well.

Mexico's drinking age is 18 years old (vs. 21 in the United States) which makes it a common weekend destination for many high school and college students from Southern California.

Mexicali hosts Baja Prog, one of the world's most important events in progressive rock.

Mexicali hosts four main shopping malls, the most visited being Plaza La Cachanilla, located a mile away from the US border. The mall hosts a variety of shops, which sell a wide array of items, ranging from cheap Mexican curios to expensive imports. The Plaza La Cachanilla also represents a common place for people to socialize, especially during summer days when the weather reaches high temperatures, many families come and spend the day inside the air-conditioned mall.

For recreation, Mexicali has bath halls, bowling alleys, traditional cantinas, car clubs, strip clubs, movie theaters, museums, a zoo, a convention centre, supermarkets, and fast food restaurants for every choice of food.

Galerias del Valle, holds a WalMart Supercenter, a 12-screen movie theater Cinepolis, two casinos, and a food court, plus a large array of stores that sell many items needed for daily living. It is located on Boulevard Lázaro Cárdenas at Calle 11.