Alma Delia Abrego Ceballos, Baja California’s secretary of culture, expressed her willingness to explore financial incentives and other forms of support for the state’s artistic community, particularly for independent galleries struggling due to declining tourism.

Speaking at the inauguration of the fourth edition of Rosarito Art Walk, Abrego Ceballos acknowledged that the agency currently has no specific program dedicated to supporting galleries. However, she emphasized her openness to engaging with artists and gallery owners to identify potential avenues for aid.

“At this time, we haven’t developed a program that supports galleries independently,” she said. “But we are very open, and if there’s a citizen-led initiative from gallery owners, we’re happy to sit down and explore how we can help.”

The secretary noted that recent years have seen galleries evolve or close altogether in response to economic pressures.

“We’ve seen galleries begin to transform—some into cafés, some into restaurants. Others are combining formats, some have reopened, and others have shut down,” she explained. “The reality is, we haven’t created a standalone support program for them.”

Nevertheless, Abrego Ceballos highlighted broader efforts by her department to support the cultural sector. One such initiative is the elimination of public event taxes for cultural programming.

“We’ve worked on the tax exemption for cultural events, which is part of the zero-rate decree for culture—it’s no longer frozen,” she said. “Anyone who wants to organize a cultural event can benefit. And just like this zero-rate model for public performances, we could consider something similar for galleries. We’re open to having that conversation.”