Sharp Decline Continues in International Adoptions
The Annual Report on Intercountry Adoption was released by the US State Department on Friday. The State Department is mandated by law to track international adoption statistics and it is highly anticipated by international adoption advocates. . For the NINTH year in a row, the report revealed a sharp decrease in the number of children being placed in permanent, loving families through international adoption. It is a sad reality that while the number of adoptions decreases, the numbers of children in need does not follow suit. International adoption is not the answer for all children in need, but for those parentless children who are unable to have a permanent family in their country of origin, international adoption is not only a viable option, but a necessary one.As we reviewed the report at our weekly staff meeting yesterday, MLJ Adoptions team members experienced sadness and dismay. In 2013, intercountry adoption by US citizens decreased by 18% to 7,094 children over 2012. This decrease is the largest we have seen since the 27% drop in 2009 (following the implementation of the Hague Convention), and the second largest in the past 10 years. This was down from the high in 2004 of 22,884 placements. We are all keenly aware that each of those points of decline could represent a child languishing in an institution without the benefits of a permanent, loving family.
There are a multitude of causes for the decline and no stakeholder in international adoption is immune to blame. Sending countries have thrown up obstacles to the completion of adoptions within their borders. Russia, which had been third on the list in 2012, contributed to the decline by implementing its full ban on international adoptions. Additionally, distrust between sending and receiving countries and skepticism drastically reduced the number of adoptions finalized in countries such as Ethiopia.
Adoptive parents contribute to the sending countries unease and lack of support for international adoption by not fulfilling post adoption report requirements. Without assurances that their children are being well-taken care of, sending countries are reluctant to implement procedures facilitating international adoption. Adoption service providers may also work against each other in efforts to advocate for their client families. Well-intentioned or not, these actions can bring undesirable attention to the international adoption process and add to the mistrust that exists in the sending countries’ decision-making bodies.
Our own State Department has also played a part in the decline. In this AP article, Chuck Johnson, CEO of the National Council of Adoption, contended that some of the decline stems from the way in which the State Department implemented the Hague Convention on Inter-Country Adoption. Although, the agreement was intended to prevent fraud and corruption and allow for an increase in adoptions, they actually continued to decrease after its implementation. “The U.S. has encouraged and in some cases strong-armed impoverished countries to sign the Hague Convention and then cites their inability to comply with strict Hague standards as a reason for not doing intercountry adoption with them,” Johnson said.
Despite these roadblocks, our sadness and discouragement turned to resolve, determination and hope. We passionately believe that every child is born with the human right to a family and we are firmly committed to improving the climate for international adoption through advocacy and collaboration so that all the world’s children can achieve this right.
We fervently support Children in Families First (CHIFF), a bill introduced in Congress last year that requires a priority be placed upon getting children into loving, permanent homes through family preservation and reunification, kinship care, and domestic and international adoption. If passed, we believe this bill will be instrumental in improving the climate for international adoption and streamlining the process.IF CHIFF is passed by the US Congress, we believe that the tide will change for international adoption. The Annual Reports on Intercountry Adoption released in the coming years by the US State Department will tell a much different story. MLJ Adoptions team members will continue to strive to reach the day when we can cheer the release of this report for the children in need. Most importantly of all, though, we will continue to serve the children that are represented by these numbers.
MLJ Adoptions has international programs in Bulgaria, Congo, Haiti, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Samoa and Ukraine. For more information about these programs click here.
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