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May 22, 2012
International Adoptions Fall to Lowest Level In 15 Years
(Updated) Supply of available orphans falls as demand among evangelicals continues to rise.
Update (Jan. 25): Fresh stats from the State Department indicate that adoptions of foreign children by Americans have fallen to a new low: less than 8,700 in 2012, down from a high of almost 23,000 in 2004. The New York Times has details.
CT recently noted how American evangelicals have pivoted to adopt other types of children in response.
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International adoptions worldwide dropped from a high of 45,000 in 2004 to an estimated 25,000 last year, prompting debate over whether restrictions designed to protect babies from abuse have been too successful.
The sharp decline comes amid a demonstrable surge of interest in adoption by U.S. evangelicals.
Evangelical giving toward adoption-related causes increased almost 15 percent in 2010, the last year analyzed by ECFA.
Christianity Today has reported regularly on international adoption news, including how adoption has surged in popularity among evangelicals, how the high-profile Haiti adoption scandal might impact such efforts, how crackdowns in Ethiopia reduced adoptions by 90 percent, and debate over the ethics of international adoption.
Comments
What is the point of this article? That international adoption rates have dropped in the last 8 years is not new news. You seem to be patting yourself on the back for your previous adoption reporting. And are you saying that now that more evangeical churches and christian celebrities are finally promoting adoption, the process is too difficult? It seems the article is missing its story.
Posted By: In the process of adopting | May 23, 2012 1:42 PM
Part of the problem is politics. Last I heard, Vietnam and Guatemala closed for adoptions and China is at a standstill.These countries accounted for a huge portion of international adoptions. My Wife and I have been waiting 5 years for our second China adoption. People are not applying for China anymore because of the wait.
Then on top of that the bad economy surely has had an effect on adoptions as most international adoptions cost from $20,000-$45,000 and now our government wants to do away with the adoption tax credit.No more help from Uncle Sam.Put all of these factors together and you get a severe drop in adoptions.
Posted By: Jim | May 23, 2012 9:25 PM
I agree with Jim and wish him luck. Wait times and politics have put many obstacles in the international adoption process. Some of these restrictions are necessary though, as children were being put in dangerous and traumatic situations in the past. I’ve read that Laos has also suspended adoptions, and it’s become more difficult to adopt a Russian child. It’s no secret that international adoption is a difficult, long and expensive process, but for couples who want to do it, these impediments are navigable. My husband and I spent two years working with Thailand family lawyers to adopt our daughter. It was truly the most stressful experience of our lives. Now that our baby girl is home with us, we never even think about the process anymore. The road was long and strenuous, but at the end of the road was the beautiful family life that we’d been dreaming about.
Posted By: Jenn | May 24, 2012 4:12 AM
In Latin America, the United Nations has made an impact requiring changes to laws within countries as the basis to continue receiving aid. In El Salvador, for instance, the new LEPINA laws state that if there is an available family member, the child must go to them, regardless of whether or not the family members want the child. This has affected orphanages and their assistance as well.
Posted By: Kenton | May 25, 2012 5:59 PM
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