Adriana is a political economist committed to improving the quality of democracy by tackling power inequalities that lead to economic and social injustice. Adriana has been a pioneer of quantitative, data-based anticorruption advocacy in Colombia. She was an advisor to the Minister at the Ministry of National Defense, where she structured the Anticorruption and Integrity Unit and coordinated initiatives for the transparency of procurement spending in the Military Forces and the Police. She was also the Director of Public Policy and Studies at the Anti-Corruption Institute, a Colombian NGO, where she wrote policy papers presenting tools for the prevention and detection of risks of corruption and undue influence in government based on the use of open data -particularly in the infrastructure sector-. She advocated for transparency and access to information on beneficial ownership in Colombia, and trained citizens on how to use open procurement data to identify irregularities in public spending.
Adriana has spoken publicly about these issues in forums such as the Colombian Congress and international events organized by the Open Government Partnership. Adriana has been a lecturer to undergraduate students on the implementation of quantitative methods for economic analysis, and a consultant for government projects aimed at facilitating foreign trade. She was also a grantee of the Colombian Young Researchers program, in which she focused her research on the relationship between labor informality and forced migration due to the armed conflict.
Adriana holds a Bachelor’s degree and a Master’s in Economics from the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana in Bogotá, and an MSc in Political Science and Political Economy from the London School of Economics and Political Science.
I find my professional purpose in contributing building fair and egalitarian societies, but underneath that purpose there is a strong conviction that humankind can thrive sustainably for many more generations if we can overcome collective threatening challenges such as climate change, wars and inequality. I am aware that my individual action is insufficient for structural change. This is why I consider that the best way I can contribute is through empowering citizens to build an active and healthy relationship with democracy.Adriana Romero-Barreto