Intercountry adoption of children falls sharply

https://www.ft.com/content/eb32208a-b625-11e6-ba85-95d1533d9a62

Intercountry adoption of children falls sharply Rising costs and drop in poverty rate among reasons for decline FT Data Read next China steps up censorship for Trump inauguration © AP Twitter Facebook LinkedIn 1 Save DECEMBER 6, 2016 by: Valentina Romei Up to the mid-2000s, intercountry adoption had grown into a popular way of caring for abandoned children. But in 2014, all 24 of the major receiving countries reported a 70 per cent drop in the number of adoptees over a 10-year period — a steep trend which continued in 2015. Sample the FT’s top stories for a week You select the topic, we deliver the news. Select topic Enter email addressInvalid email Sign up By signing up you confirm that you have read and agree to the terms and conditions, cookie policy and privacy policy. The US remains the world’s largest intercountry adopting state, but while 23,000 children were adopted in the US in 2004, this figure had fallen to 5,000 in 2015. This steep global decline raises questions. Are better alternatives available? Is it the result of fewer abandoned children globally? An array of theories has emerged, ranging from rising costs and political tension to burgeoning bureaucracies that have made it more difficult for children to settle with a family. Professor Peter Selman, a leading international adoption specialist and the man behind The Hague’s annual adoption statistics report, has been observing this phenomenon for a number of years and has identified two main trends: “Fewer children are being abandoned and domestic adoption is rising”. Declining poverty and better child care systems Poverty is a driving factor in a family’s decision to abandon their child. A rise in living standards in the past decade in some of the main countries that send children — China, Russia and South Korea to name a few — is a plausible explanation behind the decline.

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https://www.ft.com/content/eb32208a-b625-11e6-ba85-95d1533d9a62