We received an e-mail from our agency with good news:
America World has received confirmation of significant personnel changes within MOWA. These changes have resulted in overall staff turnover and changes within the adoption unit. The unit is now called the Ministry of Women, Children and Youth Affairs (MOWCYA). We are hopeful that the new leadership will not only support processing an adequate number of favorable recommendation letters, but also continue to implement policies that will best serve the children of Ethiopia. Due to the staffing changes we anticipate much transition over the next few weeks until the staff are settled into their new positions. We have continued to receive optimistic feedback and have seen how the Ethiopian government is very committed to adoption.
We look forward to more good news and a court date!
Showing posts with label Slow down. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Slow down. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Friday, March 11, 2011
The latest information on Ethiopia
There are so many rumors about what's going to happen with Ethiopia adoptions. I don't know if any of them are true so I'll stick with the facts. The Joint Council posted the following summary of today's Department of State conference call:
The following are our notes from the Department of State Office of Children’s Issues conference call regarding Ethiopian adoptions conducted earlier today. These notes do not represent nor are they in any way attributable to the Department of State or US Citizenship and Immigration Services. We are providing the notes with respect to those who could not participate in the conference.
We extend our thanks to the Department of State for conducting the conference call and to US Citizenship and Immigration Services for their participation and contributions.
_______________________________________________________________
The Department of State is Actively Involved
The Ethiopian Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs announced a reduction in the processing of intercountry adoption cases from 50 per day to 5 per day, effective March 10, 2011.
The Department of State is actively involved in discussions with the Government of Ethiopia, other governments and stakeholders.
A coalition of countries is preparing a proposal to assist the Ministry increase its capacity.
Embassy suggested that children with special need’s cases should not be delayed.
The US Embassy officials have a scheduled meeting with the Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs for Monday, March 14, 2011.
There are areas of concern related to intercountry adoption, however the reduction is disproportionate.
Adoption Cases:
Currently there are no implementation guidelines for in-process cases.
For adoption cases registered with the Ethiopian court, the best estimate is a one-year delay.
The staff change at the Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs has been confirmed as taking effect the week of March 13, 2011. The impact this will have on adoption cases is not known.
It is estimated that between 800-1,000 adoption cases are currently on the docket of Ethiopian courts.
We are looking forward to more information after MOWA and the US Embassy meets.
Today, our agency was able to secure April court dates for two families! It's great to know that court dates are still being issued! It gives us hope that we could receive our court date soon.
The following are our notes from the Department of State Office of Children’s Issues conference call regarding Ethiopian adoptions conducted earlier today. These notes do not represent nor are they in any way attributable to the Department of State or US Citizenship and Immigration Services. We are providing the notes with respect to those who could not participate in the conference.
We extend our thanks to the Department of State for conducting the conference call and to US Citizenship and Immigration Services for their participation and contributions.
_______________________________________________________________
The Department of State is Actively Involved
The Ethiopian Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs announced a reduction in the processing of intercountry adoption cases from 50 per day to 5 per day, effective March 10, 2011.
The Department of State is actively involved in discussions with the Government of Ethiopia, other governments and stakeholders.
A coalition of countries is preparing a proposal to assist the Ministry increase its capacity.
Embassy suggested that children with special need’s cases should not be delayed.
The US Embassy officials have a scheduled meeting with the Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs for Monday, March 14, 2011.
There are areas of concern related to intercountry adoption, however the reduction is disproportionate.
Adoption Cases:
Currently there are no implementation guidelines for in-process cases.
For adoption cases registered with the Ethiopian court, the best estimate is a one-year delay.
The staff change at the Ministry of Women’s, Children’s and Youth Affairs has been confirmed as taking effect the week of March 13, 2011. The impact this will have on adoption cases is not known.
It is estimated that between 800-1,000 adoption cases are currently on the docket of Ethiopian courts.
We are looking forward to more information after MOWA and the US Embassy meets.
Today, our agency was able to secure April court dates for two families! It's great to know that court dates are still being issued! It gives us hope that we could receive our court date soon.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE Update
The US Department of State has issued an alert for Ethiopia adoptions.
Click here for the alert. I have posted the text below:
Government of Ethiopia Plans Major Slow-Down in Adoption Processing
March 9, 2011
Citing the need to work on quality and focus on more important strategic issues, the Government of Ethiopia’s Ministry of Women, Children, and Youth Affairs (MOWCYA) will reduce to a maximum of five the number of adoption cases it processes per day, effective March 10, 2011. Under Ethiopian adoption procedures, MOWCYA approves every match between prospective adoptive parents and an Ethiopian child before that case can be forwarded for a court hearing. The U.S. Embassy is working with Ethiopian government officials and adoption agencies to learn more about this change in procedures. We will continue to share information as it becomes available.
Given MOWCYA's current caseload, the U.S. Embassy anticipates that this change could result in an overall decline in case processing of some 90 percent. If this change is implemented as proposed, we expect, that parents who have begun the process of adopting from Ethiopia but have not yet been matched with a child could experience significant delays. It is not clear if this change in procedures would have any significant impact on cases in which MOWCYA has already approved matches.
Prospective adoptive parents should remain in close contact with their adoption service provider to obtain updates on individual cases.
The Embassy's Adoptions Unit can be reached at consadoptionaddis@state.gov.
Please continue to monitor http://adoption.state.gov/ for updated information as it becomes available
Please continue to pray.
Click here for the alert. I have posted the text below:
Government of Ethiopia Plans Major Slow-Down in Adoption Processing
March 9, 2011
Citing the need to work on quality and focus on more important strategic issues, the Government of Ethiopia’s Ministry of Women, Children, and Youth Affairs (MOWCYA) will reduce to a maximum of five the number of adoption cases it processes per day, effective March 10, 2011. Under Ethiopian adoption procedures, MOWCYA approves every match between prospective adoptive parents and an Ethiopian child before that case can be forwarded for a court hearing. The U.S. Embassy is working with Ethiopian government officials and adoption agencies to learn more about this change in procedures. We will continue to share information as it becomes available.
Given MOWCYA's current caseload, the U.S. Embassy anticipates that this change could result in an overall decline in case processing of some 90 percent. If this change is implemented as proposed, we expect, that parents who have begun the process of adopting from Ethiopia but have not yet been matched with a child could experience significant delays. It is not clear if this change in procedures would have any significant impact on cases in which MOWCYA has already approved matches.
Prospective adoptive parents should remain in close contact with their adoption service provider to obtain updates on individual cases.
The Embassy's Adoptions Unit can be reached at consadoptionaddis@state.gov.
Please continue to monitor http://adoption.state.gov/ for updated information as it becomes available
Please continue to pray.
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