Egypt_International_Adoption

International Adoption Policy Paper Moira Cleary Per. 3    I.    Country Profile A.   PHYSICAL GEOGRAPHY 1.    Official Name: Arab Republic of Egypt 2.   Desert; hot dry summers, moderate winters 3.       a.    Location absolute: 27 00 N, 30 00 E; Location relative: Northern Africa, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Libya and the Gaza Strip, and the Red Sea north of Sudan, and includes the Asian Sinai Peninsula b.   Physical Features: Mount Catherine, Nile, Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Libyan Desert c.   Size: 1,001,450 sq km    B.    POLITICAL GEOGRAPHY 4.   Type of Government: republic Government Officials: Moussa Mustafa MOUSSA, Rifaat EL-SAID, Mahmoud ABAZA, Mohamed Hosni MUBARAK Political Parties: National Democratic Party, Tomorrow Party, New Wafd Party , National Progressive Unionist Grouping or Tagammu 5.   Capital: Cairo 6.   International Organization Affiliations: ABEDA, ACCT, AfDB, AFESD, AMF, AU, BSEC (observer), CAEU, COMESA, EBRD, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, MINURCAT, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OAPEC, OAS (observer), OIC, OIF, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO 7.   Size of Armed Forces: app. 41654185 people C.   CULTURAL GEOGRAPHY 8.   Languages: Official language -  [|Literary Arabic] ; Major native language - [|Egyptian Arabic] (68%); Minority languages - [|Sa'idi Arabic] (29%), [|Bedouin Arabic] (1.6%), [|Sudanese Arabic] (0.6%), [|Domari] (0.3%), [|Nobiin] (0.3%), [|Bedawi] (0.1%), other; Main immigrant languages - [|Greek], [|Armenian] ; Main foreign languages - [|English] , [|French] Ethnic Composition: Egyptian 99.6%, other 0.4% Religions: Muslim (mostly Sunni) 90%, Coptic 9%, Christian 1% 9.   Population: 81,713,520 (July 2008 est.) Population Growth Rate: 1.682% (2008 est.) Population Distribution: Along water sources, mostly on Nile River 10.   Major Cities: Cairo, El Giza, Alexandria, Benha, El Minya, Asyût, Port Said, Sohâg, Qena, Luxor, Aswân 11.   Infant Mortality Rate: 28.36 deaths/1,000 live births Average Life Expectancy: 71.85 years 12.   Teachers/population: 26,000/81,713,520 Doctors/population: 170,000/ 81,713,520 D.   ECONOMIC GEOGRAPHY 13.   GDP total: $405.4 billion (2007 est.) GDP per capita: $5,000 (2007 est.) 14.   Land for Agriculture: 2.92% 15.   Natural Resources: Oil, gas 16.   Agricultural Products: cotton, rice, corn, wheat, beans, fruits, vegetables; cattle, water buffalo, sheep, goats Industrial Products: textiles, food processing, tourism, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, hydrocarbons, construction, cement, metals, light manufactures 17.   Imports: machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, chemicals, wood products, fuels Exports: crude oil and petroleum products, cotton, textiles, metal products, chemicals 18.   Currency: Egyptian pound (EGP) Exchange Rate: $5.67 (2007) 19.   Balance of Trade: $-20.5 billion 20.    1981: Anwar al-Sadat is assassinated 1981: National Referendum 1984: Egypt rejoins Islamic Conference 1989: Egypt rejoins the Arab League 1990-1991: Gulf War 1991: Half of national debt forgiven II. Background International adoption is the adopting of a child from a country that the adopting parents are not a citizen of. Normally couples do this because either they don’t qualify in their own country or the waiting list is too long. Developing countries are some of the number one contributors of children who need adopting. The international adoption rate has increased by quite a bit throughout the world due to industrial advancements, bad economy, and higher male and female infertility rate. International adoption started in World War II, when many children were orphaned and left to suffer through famine and mass migration. International adoption was also highly popular during the Vietnam War when two thousand children were airlifted out of a war zone and orphaned. A country that is high in international adoption rates is China because of their One-Child law; so many second children are given up. There is some concern about interracial adopting in some countries, and some worries about Child traffickers masquerading as adopters. III. UN Involvement International adoption has always been of the least concern in the past, but a few problems like child trafficking have arisen to make the topic mentionable. The Convention of the Rights of the Child has really gotten involved with international adoption because of them being in armed conflict and being trafficked, and they believe in guaranteeing them their rights. UNICEF has been a great help and has proposed many conventions, but almost all of them only deal with children in armed conflict and treating them as according to their rights. IV. Country Policy/Possible Solutions Adopting an Egyptian orphan is a very long and difficult process, but necessary for the well being of the child. We do have a high fertility rate and a low birth defect rate. The only way that one could get guaranteed a child is if they are or were a citizen of Egypt, or have connections with Egypt. Family lineage is also a good way to get one’s self a child. We have no legal process in adopting because we frown upon families giving up their children, and many countries do not respect the rights of the child. We also do not endorse international adoption for ourselves. One solution we could pose is to create a law, like China, to only produce two children per family, so no one will have to give up any children ever. V.   Sources http://www.unog.ch/80256EDD006B9C2E/(httpNewsByYear_en)/8F82B73069DFF9DCC125739C0054D8D8?OpenDocument http://daccessdds.un.org/doc/UNDOC/GEN/G99/401/89/PDF/G9940189.pdf?OpenElement http://permanent.access.gpo.gov/lps11558/travel.state.gov/adoption_egypt.html http://www.norway-egypt.org/policy/family/adoption/adoption.htm