A step in the right direction

Govt ratifies Hague Convention
Last Updated : 2009-05-01 1:12 AM
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KATHMANDU ; The government on Tuesday signed the Hague Convention, an international agreement between participating countries, on the best adoption procedures.
Pramesh Kumar Hamal, Nepali ambassador to the European Communities, signed the Hague Convention of 29 May 1993 on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Inter-country Adoption.
The procedures of the convention consider the best interests of children and prevention of abduction, exploitation, sale, or trafficking of children.

The guidelines and procedures that are set forth in the Hague Convention are also for the protection of biological as well as adoptive parents. A part of the convention’s guidelines ensures that one central authority is in place in each country so that adoptive parents get accurate information regarding adoption.

The government introduced Conditions and Procedures 2008 last year to centralise the procedures at the ministry. Earlier, child care centres received adoption files directly from prospective adoptive parents.

It listed the domestic and the foreign agencies and created two new entities, the Investigation, Recommendation and Supervision Board and the Family Selection Committees.

Harikrishna Paudel, joint secretary at Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare admitted that these conditions did not fulfill the requirements of the Convention.

“The new Child Act, which is being drafted in line with the convention, addresses the issues of inter-country adoption.”

Ministerial level meeting in October accredited 58 foreign agencies from 10 countries and 38 domestic agencies for inter-country adoption. The inter-country adoption was suspended in May 2007.