Proposal to stop adoption fees defended

THE National Department of Social Development said yesterday that fees should not be charged for adoption as it was not a business but a child protection measure.

Department of Social Development spokesperson Lumka Oliphant said: “There are 23 civil society organisations that form part of the National Child Care and Protection Forum (NCCPF), including the National Adoption Coalition of South Africa.

“The Adoption Fee Clause amendment provides that adoption is one of the designated child protection services as stipulated in Section 105 (5) of the act.”

Oliphant said the state was already taking financial responsibility for all designated child protection services, which must include adoption services.

There was no reason adoption services should be isolated and receive special focus, she said.

The department said although there was much public interest in the removal of the Adoption Fee Clause, as proposed in the Children’s Act Amendment, it must be noted that it began consulting on changes to the act in 2016.

“Provincial consultations were conducted during August and September 2018. The consolidated inputs into the bill were gazetted from October 29 until November 29.

The gazetted bill was further discussed and consulted on during the NCCPF held from November 20 to 22, when the removal of adoption fees was discussed at length.”

She said the department’s view was that adoption should not be “commodified”, but that the primary objective should be to protect the best interests of children by placing them permanently with suitable families.

“This is supported by Section 229 of the act, which provides the purposes of adoption as being to protect and nurture children by providing a safe, healthy environment with positive support; and to promote the goals of permanency planning by connecting children to other safe and nurturing family relationships intended to last a lifetime.”

Oliphant said allowing fees to be charged compromised the children and families who had a genuine interest in nurturing adopted children but could not afford the fees. |