Orfan Saldaña Ávila joined the Basel Institute on Governance in January 2026 as a Corruption Prevention Specialist. He provides technical assistance to environmental agencies and other institutions in Bolivia to identify and mitigate corruption risks. He also supports the implementation of preventive measures within institutional systems, with a particular focus on the forestry sector.

Orfan has more than 25 years of professional experience in the public and private sectors, specialising in natural resource management, environmental governance and institutional strengthening.

He spent over 16 years at the Authority for the Supervision and Social Control of Forests and Land (ABT) in Bolivia, where he held a range of senior technical and management positions. These included roles as Technical Officer, Head of Regional Forest and Land Operational Offices (UOBT) in different regions of the country, Departmental Director of ABT in Santa Cruz, and National Head of Operational Control.

In addition, he has worked as an independent consultant for more than 10 years, supporting the design and implementation of forest management instruments and providing technical assistance on the control, management and sustainable use of forest resources.

Orfan is a Forest Engineer and holds a degree from the Universidad Autónoma Gabriel René Moreno (UAGRM) in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, as well as a postgraduate diploma in Environmental Management from the Universidad de Aquino Bolivia.