Adoption and Kafala

Adoption is the formal, permanent transfer of parental rights to a family other than a child’s own and the formal assumption by that family of all parenting duties for the child. Where a child’s parents are living and their parental rights have not been terminated, they must provide informed consent for adoption. In some countries it is not culturally acceptable to give the parental rights to a non-family member, and therefore alternative long-term care options must be pursued e.g. kinship care. In some Islamic countries, the term ‘Kafala’ in Islamic law is used to describe a situation similar to adoption, but without the severing of family ties, the transference of inheritance rights, or the change of the child’s family name.

Given the permanency of adoption, it should be used very carefully and only when it is in a child’s best interests. In some cases difficult choices must be made between keeping a child in a temporary care situation in the hope of eventual family reunification, and a child’s developmental need for permanent attachment and care within a family environment. Adoption should not be considered an option in an emergency context. In the case of family separation in an emergency all tracing activities must be exhausted before adoption can be considered.

The long term care of a child requires thorough assessment and planning, and should include the participation of all those affected, especially the child in question. The choice for adoption must meet the child’s long term needs and wishes, and enable their healthy development into adulthood. Wherever possible, children should remain with siblings and encouraged to maintain contact with relatives. All adoptive placements should be in keeping with applicable national law and international standards.

Ideally adoptive parents should come from a similar cultural and religious background to the child, so that the child can retain her heritage and sense of identity. This will be more likely when the adoption is within the country of the child’s origin. The child care policies of a country must therefore provide mechanisms for formal state adoption procedures, and provide workers to support this process. Intercountry or cross border adoptions should be used with caution since the child is likely to grow up in unfamiliar surroundings, and may therefore be more isolated and exposed to risk. When intercountry adoption is in the best interests of a child, international protection agencies should ensure standards are met and procedures should be in keeping with the Hague Convention on intercountry adoption.

This section of papers includes country and policy examples of the use of adoption and guidance on practice.

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Adopting Better Care: Improving Adoption Services Around the World

EveryChild , 06 Jul 2012

In the third edition of EveryChild’s working paper series, Positive Choices, the practices of domestic and inter-country adoption are examined. The paper aims to explore why adoption is so rarely used globally, and to examine whether or not an expansion of adoption services could offer a potential solution to the millions of children around the world in need of permanent care and currently languishing in harmful institutions.

Better Care Network, 06 Jun 2012

The People’s Republic of China issued its third and fourth combined report on the implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in June 2012. This extract of the report focuses on sections relevant to children's care and in particular those addressing Family Environment and Alternative Care

Intercountry Adoption Policy Brief

Save the Children, 01 Jun 2012

This policy brief by Save the Children sets out the organization’s position on intercountry adoption, highlighting research findings and referring to international legal standards and good practices. Recognizing that intercountry adoption has played a role in allowing for abandoned, orphaned or children with disabilities to be raised in a loving family from another country, the organization stresses effective regulation to ensure it serves the best interest of the child and does not involve commercial or criminal gain, fraud, child trafficking, or the deception of the birth parents.

Ideal Components and Current Characteristics of Alternative Care Options for Children Outside of Parental Care in Low‐Resource Countries

Victor K. Groza, Kelley McCreery Bunkers, Gary N. Gamer - Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development Volume 76, Issue 4, 21 Dec 2011

Utilizing the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and the Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children, this paper from Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development Volume 76, Issue 4 examines critical components and current characteristics of alternative care for children in low‐resource countries.

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Children without Permanent Parents: Research, Practice, and Policy

Robert B. Mccall, Marinus H. Van Ijzendoorn, Femmie Juffer, Christina J. Groark, and Victor K. Groza - Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development, 21 Dec 2011

This monograph reviews literature pertaining to children without permanent parents.

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Development of Adopted Children with Histories of Early Adversity

Femmie Juffer Jesús Palacios Lucy Le Mare Edmund J. S. Sonuga‐Barke Wendy Tieman Marian J. Bakermans‐Kranenburg Panayiota Vorria Marinus H. van IJzendoorn Frank C. Verhulst, 21 Dec 2011

This chapter from Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development Volume 76, Issue 4 first presents a review of research on the development of adopted children, focusing on meta‐analytic evidence and highlighting comparisons between adopted children with and without histories of early adversity.

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The Way Forward Project Report

Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute (CCAI), 01 Nov 2011

The Congressional Coalition on Adoption Institute’s The Way Forward Project brought together a group of international experts to discuss opportunities and challenges facing governmental and non-governmental organization leaders in six African nations (Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, and Uganda) as they work to develop systems of care that serve children in and through their families.

Prakas on Procedures to Implement the Policy on Alternative Care for Children (Cambodia)

Ministry of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation, Kingdom of Cambodia, 01 Oct 2011

This Prakas is intended to define roles and responsibilities of relevant competent agencies and establish procedures, operational guides, and forms to implement the Policy on Alternative Care for Children.

Adoption and the Care of Orphan Children: Islam and the Best Interests of the Child

Muslim Women’s Shura Council (August, 2011), 01 Aug 2011

In this position paper, the Muslim Women’s Shura Council considers whether adoption can be possible within an Islamic framework.

At Home or In a Home: Formal Care and Adoption of Children in Eastern Europe and Central Asia

UNICEF, 01 Jul 2011

Published by UNICEF, the report At Home or in a Home, provides an overview of the major trends and concerns about children in formal care and institutions as well as adoption Central and Eastern Europe and Central Asia.