Adriana Beltrán

For more than twenty years, Adriana Beltrán has championed the promotion of policies and strategies to advance the rule of law and social justice in Central America. She has extensive experience addressing human rights, corruption, and governance related issues, and has worked closely with a wide range of civil society organizations, activists and networks in Central America, government officials, and multilateral entities.

Before joining SIF, Beltrán served as Director of the Citizen Security Program for the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA), a U.S.-based research and advocacy organization, where she monitored U.S.-Central America relations and promoted policies to address the drivers of migration, improve government accountability and transparency, and promote human rights in Central America. During her time at WOLA, she championed numerous advocacy initiatives, including for the establishment of a UN-sponsored commission to investigate and prosecute illicit networks linked to the state– an effort that culminated in the creation of the International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (CICIG) in 2007. Most recently, she developed and oversaw a regional project to assess how the policies and strategies being implemented in Central America are contributing to the strengthening of the rule of law, improving transparency and accountability, and to reducing violence and insecurity.

She has written and co-authored various reports and articles on citizen security, corruption, governance, and democracy in Central America and on U.S. policy toward the region, including Protect and Serve? The Status of Police Reform, and Hidden Powers, a ground-breaking study documenting the rise and impact of illegal armed groups in post-conflict Guatemala. She has testified before U.S. Congress and is a frequent commentator in the media.

Beltrán was born and raised in Colombia and has traveled extensively in Central America and the region. She holds a Master’s degree in International Public Policy from Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) and a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science and International Studies from Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa.