Adoption In Africa

Since 2007, adoption in Africa has increased in countries like Morocco, Nigeria and Rwanda. In 2010 Ethiopia was the country with the second-highest number of international adoptions, according to the Bureau of Consular Affairs.

Adoption in African countries are growing slowly although, in April 2011, the Ethiopian government recently changed the country's policy to enable a maximum of only five adoptions a day and Rwanda has postponed its adoptions until it receives Hague certification.

Many countries, like the Democratic Republic of Congo are among the poorest in the world and children are orphaned by disease, poverty and social unrest. Social unrest can sometimes disrupt the adoption process, which can be devastating for prospective parents who must either wait or work around any governmental and policy changes. Another big concerns for potential adopters of African children are related to the child's health.

For the most part, the process for African adoption is like any other international adoption. Prospective parents must find an agency, fill out paperwork for visas and birth certificates and travel to the child's country of origin. Some agencies may require the prospective parents to live in the country for up to three months to understand the child's culture and parents will also undergo a homestudy in the African country. After a homestudy is successfully passed, the adoptive parents will be placed with a child who they then foster and are observed while doing so. After that, the parents can petition for adoption and may have one to two hearings to attend as well as counseling and court reviews before the adoption is finalized in Africa and a U.S. state.