Is Your Adopted Child Held in an Orphanage in the South?

Do you have a child who is being held in the Southern Region even though their adoption is approved by MOWCYA and Federal Instance Court? We can help. Here is a testimony from a family we gave consult to over the summer and was among the first to get their child out of the south.

“The process of adoption can be challenging and at times, uncertain.  As government policies tend to shift without notice, it was good to have Duni advising us not only because of her knowledge, but because of her relationships in Ethiopia.  Her guidance,  and professionalism were of great value to us”  R&B Ward

We can help, contact us at info@ethiostork.org The SNNPR or Southern Regions of Ethiopia  recently changed its adoption policy. Children with no parental care who enter institutions were cleared for adoption by the Zone where the institution is located. That has now changed and a new committee is being set up to clear cases at the Kilel level. The Kiliel is the regional authority and presides over  the zones. Kilil has now taken over  the responsibility to approve children for adoption to MOWCYA. MOWCYA can only recommend children for adoption to the Federal Court only when it has a letter clearing children from the Kilil level.

Now with the children who were in institutions that closed and have been moved to other orphanages. The SNNPR is requiring them to have new paperwork through the new orphanage and fall under the new requirement of having a Kilil clearance.

Do children who have been approved by the Federal Instance Court now have to go through this new requirement? Legally, no. However families should work with experienced lawyers and adoption professionals to ensure their children leave without further delay.    

Contact us at info@ethiostork.org

Why is it so expensive to trace a birth family/history?

We get this question a lot. Expensive is subjective and depends on the product or service one is getting for their money. 10 dollars for a candy bar is expensive. 2,000 dollars for brand new Mercedes is not expensive. And some things, such as finding firth parent tracing are priceless (see our blog posted on September 21^st Three Priceless Reasons for Tracing a birth parent or family).

How much does it cost to trace a birth family?

Now Eventhough it is priceless, we work hard to keep costs down for families while delivering the best service we possibly can.  Depending on proximity of abandonment of birth country (proximity to Addis where EthioStork main office is) and information provided by families (fee to find a parent whose name is mentioned on a document and fee to find a parent of a child who is abandoned and whose document has no names of knows relatives) varies. Even with these various factors included, the fee is usually no more than 2,000 dollars. While it can range between $600-2000,he average fee is 1,500.
The fee covers cost of EthioStork searchers transportation and expenses related to searching. Search of birth families is a tasking escapade that requires much knowledge about the various rural areas of Ethiopia and long hours of searches and gathering of information. Fees also include a DVD of birth parent interviews once they are found. Only half of payment is due upon the start of a search and remaining fee is due upon completion. Need a payment plan? Let us know and we can arrange one. Contact us at info@ethiostork.org for more information

3 Web Seminars Scheduled in October & November!

Four Web Seminars Scheduled for October & November! 

Ethiopian Culture and Adoption Webinar

Recommended for families currently in the process of adoption or considering adoption these web seminars provide resources to equip you in the adoption of your Ethiopian child.  We give web seminars covering

*Ethiopian Culture and History,

*Ethiopian Adoption laws and current issues.

*What to expect, how to tell if anything in your adoption is of concern or outside the normal time  

*Equipping yourself to ensure your agency is doing its due diligence.

Cost: 60 dollars per couple

Friday, October 21st 2:00PM-4:00PM (EST)

Monday, October 24th 2:00PM-4:00PM (EST)

Friday, November 11th 2:00PM-4:00PM (EST)

Monday, November 13th 2:00PM-4:00PM

 Sign up for the next web seminar seminars@ethiostork.org