Nepal has amended legislation to allow disabled children to be adopted abroad, a government official said Tuesday, two years after a scandal over "fake" orphans. The country introduced new adoption laws in 2008 following reports of unscrupulous agents trafficking children who had been taken from their living parents.
But many countries say the checking system is still not effective, and the United States and Canada earlier this year suspended adoptions from Nepal over the concerns. "There have been requests from prospective adoptive parents for the disabled children," Sherjung Karki, under secretary of the ministry for children, told AFP.
"Therefore, we have amended legislation to allow children who are mentally and physically disabled for inter-country adoption. We hope disabled children will be adopted so that they get the best healthcare in the West." Two years ago, UNICEF found that around 60 percent of the children up for adoption in Nepal were not genuine orphans. Campaigners have said orphanages can make up to 10,000 dollars from each child.
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