International Adoption News from Adoptive Families Magazine

Haiti    Six days after the earthquake struck Port-au-Prince, the U.S. Department of State began expediting pending adoption cases and allowing children to join their prospective families, in a process known as humanitarian parole. At press time, at least several hundred orphans had joined families in the U.S. Learn more about the current situation at http://www.adoption.state.gov/.

Cambodia    The government of Cambodia has a new law on intercountry adoption. The law aims to create a countrywide child welfare system and a Hague-compliant adoption process. This is seen as an important first step in reform that could eventually lay the groundwork for a resumption of intercountry adoptions from Cambodia to the U.S.

Mexico   Mexico City’s legislative assembly voted to legalize adoption by same-sex couples on Dec. 21. The same day, the assembly also approved gay marriage, making it the second major Latin-American city to do so.

Canada    According to a report released recently by Ontario’s Ministry of Children and Youth Services, families in Canada who are interested in adoption face a number of barriers that may prevent them from ever adopting. Among the findings, objective information about adoption options isn’t readily available, and adoptive families of children with special needs don’t usually get the support they need after the adoption, the report says. Read the report at www.children.gov.on.ca/htdocs/English/infertility/index.aspx.

http://www.adoptivefamilies.com/news.php

International Adoptions to Canada Increase

 According to statistics released by Citizenship and Immigration Canada in October, international adoptions to Canada increased by 11 percent, from 1,713 in 2007 to 1,909 in 2008. Adoptions from the U.S. to Canada doubled from 94 to 189 during this period, making the U.S. the second-largest source of international adoptions to Canada (the highest is China, sending 429 children in 2008).
(From Adoptive Families magazine.)