After years of preparation, the U.S. Department of State recently announced that The Hague Convention on Intercountry Adoption will finally be ratified and implemented in the United States. All international adoptions between the U.S. and other nations that have joined the Convention, including China, will be guided by its regulations. The intent of Hague Convention is to protect the children, and also the adoptive families, by making adoption agencies adhere to ethical practices, ensure adoption agencies employ qualified staff, and make the adoption process more consistent.
The US State Department is the central authority accrediting adoption agencies, including our agency, Great Wall. The State Department also wants to make sure that adoption agencies educate adoptive families on the risks and reality involved in international adoptions.
Therefore, as part of the Hague Convention accreditation process, my agency will provide 10 hours of training on specific topics before we travel to China. Great Wall has implemented the training in stages beginning with the December 2005 LID group. We are February 2006. We have already completed 8 hours of training by attending the East Meets West conference in Atlanta last year. We will take another course, probably on Attachment and Bonding, and thus complete our family's requirements. More to follow...
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