Colombia All Families Program

Gender: Boys and girls are equally represented in the Colombian child welfare system. Therefore, the right-fit family for adoption from Colombia is one that is open to a child of either sex; this ensures that children have equal access to adoption irrespective of their sex.

Raza/Etnia: Colombia is a beautifully diverse country. The children come from a wide-range of racial and ethnic backgrounds. Families should be prepared to parent a child of any racial or ethnic background.

Siglos: Families must minimally be open to the adoption of a child ages 0 through 5 years old at the time of referral. However, the majority of children awaiting international adoption are older than 7 years-old so families with wider openness with respect to age may experience shorter wait times.

Características especiales: Children placed in this program have a range of special needs. The Colombian adoption authority thoroughly documents each child’s developmental, social and medical functioning. Additionally, you will have an opportunity to further evaluate the specific needs and abilities of the child referred to your family as the following common characteristics might impact individual children differently.

• Retrasos en el desarrollo global
• Behavioral & learning disorders which in protective care are often managed with medication
• Historial de abuso o negligencia: Es común que los niños en Colombia ingresen a protección por haber experimentado abuso o negligencia que puede incluir abuso físico, abuso emocional, abuso sexual y negligencia física o emocional.
• Antecedentes de la familia biológica: en Colombia, normalmente se conoce la familia biológica, por lo que comúnmente sabemos que los niños han experimentado exposición a sustancias en el útero y corren riesgo de padecer enfermedades mentales hereditarias.
• Medical conditions: All children referred through this program will have some form of medical need that requires care in the health system. Families who are open to chronic or profound medical needs such as CP, seizure disorder, or down syndrome may be matched more quickly.
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For families who have wider openness to special needs and who feel prepared to parent a child with complex and multi-faceted needs which exceed the needs described above, Waiting Child Adoption may be a right-fit path.