NOTICE - ETHIOPIA – ADVISORY – 1st FEBRUARY, 2012
The Authority has recently been advised of some potential difficulties in respect of intercountry adoptions being effected in Ethiopia under the transitional provisions of Section 63 of the Adoption Act, 2010.
Further inquires are currently underway. In the interim, the Authority wishes to advise all prospective adoptive parents that they should take particular care in proceeding to adopt in Ethiopia. Prospective adoptive parents are advised to take all necessary steps to ensure that the adoption proceedings comply with the Adoption Act, 2010 and with the standards of the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption, 1993.
Prospective adoptive parents utilising the transitional provisions of Section 63 are reminded that Ethiopia is not a member of the Hague Convention. Great care must be taken in observing and adhering to the appropriate Hague Convention standards in effecting an intercountry adoption from Ethiopia, most notably as regards the consents of birth parents and the matter of payments.
Prospective adoptive parents should note in particular that in order to qualify for an entry in the Register of Intercountry Adoptions an adoption must be carried out in accordance with the level of standards provided for in the Hague Convention. Applicants are particularly reminded to ensure that they are fully conversant with Article 4 of the Hague Convention:
· No payments or compensation of any kind has been provided to any person or organisation to induce consents.
· Consents of the natural parents are full, free and informed.
You should also note that under Irish domestic law, as regards the issue of consents in domestic adoptions, final consent to adoption by a natural mother is only valid if it is given not earlier than six weeks after the birth of the child. In Ireland, no child can be placed with prospective adoptive parents until such time as this minimum period of six weeks has passed since the birth. It is the Authority’s view that placements abroad in respect of Irish applicants should not take place prior to this time.
The AAI must reserve the right to refuse recognition and entry into the Register of Intercountry Adoptions to any intercountry adoption which does not accord with the standards of the Hague Convention.
Persons proposing to adopt abroad should always seek independent legal advice prior to doing so, particularly as regards any aspect of law or procedure on which they are unclear.
NOTICE - ETHIOPIA – 25th March 2011
Following further discussions between the Ethiopian and Irish authorities, adoptions from Ethiopia can continue (for holders of a declaration prior to 1st November 2010) subject to dossiers and procedures being in order.
Irish adoptions from Ethiopia are classified by the Ethiopian authorities as private adoptions and as such there is no role in the process for facilitators to secure referrals and to process adoptions. Irish Prospective Adoptive Parents (PAP’s) should therefore not pay for the services of such facilitators.
Furthermore, PAP’s are reminded that humanitarian aid or donations should not be associated with individual adoptions. In this regard, PAP’s should familiarise themselves with the Hague Convention.
In cases where it becomes apparent to the Authority that unreasonable levels of costs have been incurred, and/or where it appears that undocumented ‘cash’ transactions may have taken place, the Authority must reserve its express statutory rights to refuse to grant an entry into the statutory ‘Register of Intercountry Adoptions’ in respect of the adoption concerned.
NOTICE - ETHIOPIA - 1st March 2011
The AAI is in receipt of information from the Ethiopian Ministry of Women's,Children's and Youth Affairs that it has informed the President of the Federal First Instance Court that, with effect from March 10, 2011 it will be in a position to provide opinions on a maximum of five adoption files per day. (Heretofore it was processing fifty adoption files per day). This, the MWCYA states, is due to 'prioritization of other issues and to ensure the quality of each case.'
The AAI is currently aware of 12 PAP's currently proposing to adopt in Ethiopia from Ireland. See NOTICES below.
NOTICE – ETHIOPIA - 28th February 2011
Further to the Notice of 25th February 2011.
Persons proposing to adopt from Ethiopia who have been allocated a Court date should contact the Adoption Authority by email as soon as possible.
Please forward the following details only to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Name, AAI File ref. number, Court Date, Court case no.
NOTICE – ETHIOPIA- 25th February 2011
The AAI has been informed by the Irish embassy in Addis Ababa that the Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs (MWCYA) is currently undertaking a review of adoptions. The Ministry has undertaken visits to orphanages in four regions and will continue next month with visits to the remaining regions.
Once the review has been completed, a set of guidelines will be finalised by the Ethiopian authorities. These guidelines will address the issue of private/independent adoptions. (Irish adoptions are categorised as private adoptions in that the prospective adoptive parents deal directly with the children’s home and do not go through an accredited agency). The Ministry has advised that there shall be a ‘pause’ in private adoptions until the revised guidelines are in place.
Persons who already hold a valid Declaration of Eligibility & Suitability to adopt, as of 1 November 2010, and who are proposing to adopt in Ethiopia, are reminded that under Section 63 of the Adoption Act 2010 they may only proceed to adopt in a non-Hague Convention State which ‘in the opinion of the Authority, applied standards regarding the adoption concerned that accord with those of the Hague Convention’
The AAI must reserve the right to refuse recognition to, and entry into the Register of Intercountry Adoptions of, any intercountry adoption effected in a non-Hague Convention State which does not accord with the standards of the Convention.
The AAI welcomes the decision of the MWCYA to review its adoption procedures. The Authority is committed to working with the Ministry to ensure that any adoptions effected in Ethiopia comply with Ethiopian law and accord with the standards of the Hague Convention.