Kenya Mess UPDATED
The State Department has issued two notices over the last several months. The first one was in October 15,2013: http://adoption.state.gov/country_information/country_specific_alerts_notices.php?alert_notice_type=notices&alert_notice_file=kenya_1
“Reminder of Kenyan prohibition against pre-selection of prospective adoptees
The Kenyan Adoption Committee has requested that the United States government remind adoption service providers and prospective adoptive parents of Kenya’s strict prohibition against pre-selection of children by prospective adoptive parents. The Kenyan National Adoption Committee, Kenya’s Central Authority under the Hague Adoption Convention, is likely to reject dossiers and/or referrals for families that have pre-selected a child or have had prior contact of any kind with a specific child, the child’s guardian, or individuals with power to determine a child’s eligibility or placement for adoption. This could include, but would not be limited to, contact through mission trips, volunteering at orphanages, or other relationships with the prospective adoptee. The sole exception to this prohibition is when a prospective adoptive parent can prove a blood relationship with a prospective adoptee.
The U.S. Intercountry Adoption Act, which implements the Hague Adoption Convention in the United States, and the Department of Homeland Security’s Interim Hague regulations require disclosure in the home study of any information relevant to the prospective adoptive parents’ eligibility to adopt under the specific requirements of the child’s country of origin (See 8 CFR 204.311(q)). Prior contact between prospective adoptive parents or any additional adult member of the household and a Kenyan child’s parents, custodian or other individuals or entity responsible for the child’s care may be grounds for denial of the Form I-800 (See 8 CFR 204.309(b)(2)).
Adoption service providers and prospective adoptive parents who wish to know more about intercountry adoptions from Kenya can visit the Department of State’s page on adopting from Kenya and the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi’s website for more information.”
The second one occurred January 7, 2014: http://adoption.state.gov/country_information/country_specific_alerts_notices.php?alert_notice_type=notices&alert_notice_file=kenya_2
“Notice: Kenya Adoption Committee disbanded
The U.S. Embassy in Nairobi learned that the Kenyan Central Authority, the Adoption Committee, was disbanded, thereby impacting Kenya’s ability to process intercountry adoptions. Processing of adoptions is, and will continue to be, delayed until the publication of the nomination of the new committee members.
The Department of State understands that this event has triggered a number of inquiries from U.S. adoption service providers who want to learn how the disbandment will affect pending cases. The U.S. Embassy in Nairobi continues to press for clarification and will engage with the new committee once it resumes work.
The Department will post any updates regarding this situation on adoption.state.gov as we receive information from the Kenyan authorities.”
REFORM Puzzle Piece
Update: The Department of State posted another notice on February 4.
See http://adoption.state.gov/country_information/country_specific_alerts_notices.php?alert_notice_type=notices&alert_notice_file=kenya_3 and pasted below:
“Notice: New Kenyan Adoption Committee Formed
The U.S. Embassy in Nairobi received confirmation from the Government of Kenya that the new Adoption Committee members have been named and confirmed. The Adoption Committee held its first session on January 29 and is now processing adoptions again.
If you have additional questions on the processing of adoptions in Kenya, please contact the Office of Children’s Issues at askCI@state.gov.”
Update 2: DOS issued another notice on May 23.See http://adoption.state.gov/country_information/country_specific_alerts_notices.php?alert_notice_type=notices&alert_notice_file=kenya_4
“Notice: New documents required for Kenya intercountry adoption dossiers and ASP authorization
Citing concerns regarding the path to U.S. citizenship for Kenyan children adopted by U.S. citizens, the Kenyan Adoption Committee (KAC) confirmed they will now request two new letters issued by the U.S. government as part of the intercountry adoption process. The KAC will require one new letter from prospective adoptive parents and one new letter from U.S. adoption service providers (ASPs) as part of the authorization process.
To accommodate KAC’s new requirements, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) will issue a letter to prospective adoptive parents at the time of the Form I-800A approval, describing the path by which an adoptee can acquire U.S. citizenship. This letter will be a separate document from the Form I-800A approval notice. Families should include this letter when submitting their dossier to the KAC.
Additionally, upon request from a U.S. ASP, the U.S. Department of State, Office of Children’s Issues will issue a letter describing the path by which an adoptee can acquire U.S. citizenship for use in applications to the KAC to obtain or renew authorization to operate in Kenya. The Office of Children’s Issues will submit this letter directly to the KAC, with a copy to the requesting ASP. This letter is separate from the accreditation status verification letter that is currently required by the KAC. ASP’s will need to request both letters from the U.S. Department of State, Office of Children’s Issues as part of their application to the KAC.”
Update 3: Kenya is featured in another DOS Notice. See it http://travel.state.gov/content/adoptionsabroad/en/country-information/alerts-and-notices/kenya-5.html and is pasted below:
“Notice: Kenyan press reports of ban on adoption by foreigners
The U.S. Department of State is aware of reports in the Kenyan press on November 27 of a Kenyan government decision to ban adoptions of Kenyan children by foreigners. The U.S. Embassy in Nairobi is working through diplomatic channels to confirm these reports and gather information critical to U.S. adoption service providers and prospective adoptive families. Additional information will be posted to adoption.state.gov as it becomes available. ”
http://www.nation.co.ke/news/Cabinet-No-more-foreign-adoptions/-/1056/2537564/-/feyt4qz/-/index.html [The Daily Nation 11/27/14] says
“The government has banned the adoption of Kenyan children by foreigners.
The decision was arrived at during a Cabinet meeting chaired by President Uhuru Kenyatta in Nairobi on Thursday.
The licences of those involved in inter-country adoptions were revoked with immediate effect.
“The decision has been informed by Kenya’s ranking by the Global Report on Trafficking in Persons 2014 that cited Kenya as a source, transit and destination country in human trafficking,” said a Cabinet memo sent to newsrooms.
The country is also ranked at Tier 2 Watchlist for non-compliance with minimum standards for elimination of trafficking, based on the 2014 US State Department report on trafficking in persons.
“Currently, Kenyan laws do not define child sale, child procuring, child trade and child laundering as part of trafficking,” said the memo.
The Cabinet said this had in effect put Kenyan children at high risk.
CHILDREN’S HOMES
“This has created a loophole for fraudulent vested interests, masquerading through ownership of children’s homes, adoption agencies and legal firms representing children, and adopters, to engage in the unscrupulous business of human trafficking under the guise of charity,” the Cabinet said.
A report released in August by Cradle, a child rights organisation, indicates that children as young as two were victims of trafficking for illegal adoption.
However, according to the organisation, prosecution of culprits has remained elusive since investigations were not being conducted by the relevant state agencies.
A 19-year-old missionary from Oklahoma was recently charged in a US court for sexually abusing children in an orphanage in Nairobi.
Meanwhile, the government is considering allocating additional funds to the Uwezo Fund in the next financial year to accommodate the huge number of youths and women interested in the assistance the fund provides.”
Update 4: US DOS sends another notice at http://travel.state.gov/content/adoptionsabroad/en/country-information/alerts-and-notices/kenya14-12-12.html and Pasted Below:
“Alert: Government of Kenya confirms temporary moratorium on intercountry adoptions
This is an update to our November 28 adoption notice.
The Government of Kenya confirmed to U.S. Embassy Nairobi that it will enact a temporary moratorium on intercountry adoptions for six months to a year in order to review its adoption laws. A public announcement from the Government of Kenya providing details of the temporary moratorium remains pending. The Government of Kenya stated it will allow ongoing cases to continue through the adoption process. U.S. Embassy Nairobi is awaiting details from the Kenyan National Adoption Committee on which stages of adoptions will be permitted to continue.
The Office of Children’s Issues is in touch with U.S. adoption service providers licensed by the Government of Kenya to conduct intercountry adoptions in Kenya. A comprehensive list of families who had begun the adoption process is currently being reconciled with the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Additional information regarding the temporary moratorium will be posted toadoption.state.gov as it becomes available. ”
Update 5: US DOS sends another notice at http://travel.state.gov/content/adoptionsabroad/en/country-information/alerts-and-notices/kenya15-03-10.html
“Notice: Expert committee formed to review adoptions procedures; National Adoption Committee authority revoked
On February 20, the Government of Kenya published Gazette Notice 1092 in Volume CXVII-No. 17 of the Kenya Gazette announcing the “establishment and appointment of an Expert Committee to review and develop a detailed policy and legal framework to regulate and manage child adoptions in Kenya.” Gazette Notice 1092 also revokes Gazette Notice No. 15639 of 2013 appointing the National Adoption Committee. You can download a scanned copy of the Gazette.
According to the notice, the Expert Committee is charged with reviewing domestic and intercountry adoptions procedures and developing simplified guidelines for such review. Additionally, the Expert Committee will “review and make decisions on all applications for resident and inter country adoptions that had been initiated before the issuance of the moratorium.”
No information on how the Expert Committee will carry out its tasks or the timeline for any actions under its purview is yet known. The U.S. Embassy in Nairobi and the Office of Children’s Issues have confirmed with other receiving countries active in Kenya that the Government of Kenya has not provided diplomatic missions with clarifying information on the scope of the moratorium or how pending cases will be addressed since the implementation of the moratorium in late November 2014.
We will update this webpage as soon as information becomes available.”
Update 6:US DOS issues another notice. See it here:
“Notice: Update on details of Moratorium on Intercountry Adoptions in Kenya
This is an update to the adoption notices of March 10 and December 13, 2014.
The U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya met with the Department of Children’s Services, the Kenyan government office responsible for adoption policy, on April 23 to discuss the moratorium on intercountry adoptions. The Department of Children’s Services provided clarification on two issues that have to date been unaddressed.
First, the Department of Children’s Services clarified which pending cases would be permitted to continue through the process in place prior to the moratorium. Only cases that had been discussed by the National Adoption Committee prior to November 28, 2014 will be considered “pipeline” cases. Cases that had only submitted a dossier to the National Adoption Committee are not considered “pipeline” cases. The U.S. Embassy will continue to request confirmation of which U.S. cases were discussed prior to November 28.
Second, the Department of Children’s Services confirmed that there is no longer a national body serving as the central authority for the Hague Convention for Kenya to issue the Article 23 certificate of conformity to complete a Convention intercountry adoption. The Government of Kenya will not issue certificates of conformity for Convention adoptions until a new National Adoption Committee is formed and announced in the Kenya Gazette, the official publication of government actions in Kenya. The U.S. Department of State is examining the impact this has on “pipeline” cases that may be permitted to move through the court process in Kenya.
The Department will plan a conference call for adoption service providers operating in Kenya to address questions in the coming weeks.
We will update our site as soon as new information becomes available.”
Recent Comments