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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Permanently Progressing: Building Secure Futures for Children in Scotland

Universities of Stirling, York, and Lancaster in collaboration with Adoption and Fostering Alliance (AFA) Scotland, 20 Jun 2019

After almost five years of detailed research and analysis, the reports of the Permanently Progressing study (phase one) were published on 20 June 2019. The study investigated decision making, permanence, progress, outcomes and belonging for a large cohort (1,836 children) of all children in Scotland who became looked after in 2012-13, when they were aged five or under.

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Children living in households with members of the Stolen Generations

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, 11 Jun 2019

This report presents analyses of selected outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who live in households with members of the Stolen Generations.

Moving Children through Private International Law: Institutions and the Enactment of Ethics

Sonja van Wichelen - Law & Society Review, 06 Jun 2019

This article examines how the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co‐operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption (Hague Adoption Convention) plays a central role in justifying the institution of legal adoption.

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How foster carers experience agency support for birth family contact

Susan Collings, Amy Conley Wright, Margaret Spencer, Betty Luu - Child & Family Social Work, 06 Jun 2019

There is little Australian research on the factors that influence decisions to adopt children from out‐of‐home care. This paper presents a mixed methods study that was conducted to address this gap.

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Social and Family Factors Related to Intercountry Adoptees and Immigrants’ Bicultural Identity Integration

Laura Ferrari, Claudia Manzi, Veronica Benet-Martinez, Rosa Rosnati - Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 05 Jun 2019

A study carried out in Italy based on a sample group of young immigrants (N = 168) and intercountry adoptees (N = 160) tests a model in which social (perceived discrimination) and family factors (parental autonomy support) predict psychological well-being.

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Country Care Review: Botswana

Better Care Network, 31 May 2019

This country care review includes the care-related Concluding Observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of the Child.

Storying special objects: Material culture, narrative identity and life story work for children in care

Debbie Watson, Rachel Hahn, Jo Staines - Qualitative Social Work, 19 May 2019

This paper considers the importance of material objects for looked after and adopted children integrated as part of life story work practices.

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Analysis on geographical migration networks of child trafficking crime for illegal adoption from 2008 to 2017 in China

Zhongliang Huang & Wenguo Weng - Physica A: Statistical Mechanics and its Applications, 11 May 2019

This paper used the latest judgment documents from the court as a new data source, and identified the key nodes and trafficking paths by using a series of network indicators to enhance the public’s understanding of the crime mechanism of child trafficking.

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Adoption in the Service of Child Protection: An International Interdisciplinary Perspective

Jesús Palacios, et al - Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 01 May 2019

Written from a multidisciplinary and international perspective, this article outlines the place of adoption in the child protection system, as well as its core elements of permanence and stability.

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Demography of Adoption

Mary Ann Davis - Handbook of Population, 17 Apr 2019

This chapter from the Handbook of Population reviews demographic research focusing on the adoption of children.

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