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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Orphanage Entrepreneurs: The Trafficking of Haiti's Invisible Children

Georgette Mulheir and Mara Cavanagh - Lumos, 01 Nov 2016

According to this report from Lumos, of the estimated 32,000 children who live in orphanages in Haiti, only 20 are percent orphans.

Entrepreneurs d’orphelinat : La traite des enfants invisibles d’Haïti

Georgette Mulheir avec Mara Cavanagh, 01 Nov 2016

On estime que 32 000 enfants vivent dans des orphelinats en Haïti.

Post-permanency discontinuity: A longitudinal examination of outcomes for foster youth after adoption or guardianship

Nancy Rolock and Kevin R. White — Children and Youth Services Review, 01 Nov 2016

This research examines the long-term stability of legally permanent adoptive and guardianship homes for former foster youth.

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“Children in Charge” Imagining systemic reform and redesign in care commissioning for children: A Discussion Paper

Children England, 01 Nov 2016

This paper is an attempt at rethinking the systemic problems facing the funding and commissioning of care services and placements for children in need of care and adoption, across ALL types and specialisms of placement, from kinship care, through foster care, to residential care and adoption.

The emotional experience of being internationally adopted: A qualitative study with Nepalese children adopted in Spain

Elisabeth Ballús, Carles Pérez-Téstor, 22 Oct 2016

This study attempts to understand the feelings and bonds of the often complex life situations of being an internationally adopted child.

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Country Care Review: United Arab Emirates

Better Care Network, 03 Oct 2016

This country care review includes the care-related Concluding Observations adopted by the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities during the sixteenth session (15 Aug 2016 – 2 Sept 2016) of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Critical realism and grounded theory: Analysing the adoption outcomes for disabled children using the retroduction framework

Sarah Bunt - Qualitative Social Work, 21 Sep 2016

By drawing on an empirical study on placing disabled children for adoption, the article seeks to demonstrate the practical application of critical realist by combining its Retroductive framework with Grounded Theory methods.

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In Uganda, Fostering a World without Adoption

Kathryn Joyce - Medium, 06 Sep 2016

Kathryn Joyce discusses the issues that one mother in Uganda faced when she put her child up for international adoption.

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Unregulated Custody Transfer/Re-homing of Adopted Children: Tip Sheet for Child Protection & Child Welfare Professionals

Capacity Building Center for the States, 01 Sep 2016

This tip sheet from Capacity Building for the States provides best practice intake screening questions for unregulated custody transfer/re-homing (UCT) of adopted children.

Exploring the Link between Rejection Sensitivity, Attachment Pattern and Socio-Emotional Adjustment of Adolescents Living in Orphanage and with their Parents

Sachdeva Geetika and Yasmin Rabiya - International Journal of Research in Social Sciences, 08 Aug 2016

This study examines the link between Rejection Sensitivity (RS), Attachment Pattern (AP) and Socio-Emotional Adjustment (SA & EA) among adolescent's living in orphanages and those living with their parents. Adolescents (N=360) ranging between 14–18 years completed self-report measures. The findings suggest that there exists significantly positive and negative correlation as well as significant interaction between gender and living conditions among the variables RS, AP, SA and EA.

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