Category - Congo

Home / Burkina Faso, Congo

1

May

Adopting from Africa – Which Country is Right for You?

in Burkina Faso, Congo

Adopting from Africa is a popular option for American families seeking to grow their families. They are familiar with the poverty in many African countries, and are eager to meet the needs of vulnerable children. However, deciding on which African country to adopt from is a difficult decision. Unfortunately families quickly realize that critical need ...

14

Dec

Adopting from Congo – A 2016 Program Update!

by Caitlin Snyder

In September 2013, the immigration authority in the Democratic Republic of Congo ceased issuing exit permits to children who had been adopted by U.S. families, but who hadn’t joined their families in the United States yet. Rumors surrounding this exit permit suspension swirled while the international adoption community advocated that the children, who were located ...

4

Feb

Indiana Congressional Delegation Advocates for Children in Need of Families

by Nicole Skellenger, JD

Since 2013, adoption authorities in the Democratic Republic of Congo have prevented adopted children from joining their families in the United States and in other countries around the world. These children, whose adoptions have been completed in the DRC have been denied the basic right to a family for over two years. This has been an ...

15

Dec

Misconceptions about Poverty in Third World Countries

in Burkina Faso, Congo

Most parents have resorted to the well worn phrase “there are starving children in Africa” to cajole their children into cleaning their plates at dinner time. I have said this to my own children, with the gentle reminder that I have seen the truth of this statement for myself first hand during my travels to ...

26

Nov

Adopting from Africa is One Option to Fill a Critical Need

by Caitlin Snyder

in Burkina Faso, Congo

Africa is the world’s youngest continent, and it’s only getting younger. Based on a report completed by the World Bank, 42.6% of Sub-Saharan Africa’s total population is children aged up to 14. Children who are not even old enough to work in the United States make up over 40% of the population of Sub-Saharan Africa. ...

9

Jul

Book Review: Journalist Describes Life in Kinshasa

by Brady McIntosh

in Congo, Resources

Stringer by Anjan Sundaram is a vivid first-hand account of a journalist’s time spent in the Democratic Republic of Congo surrounding the recent election of Joseph Kabila as president. A promising mathematics student, Sundaram had a change of heart while in college and decided to drop out to pursue a career in journalism in one of the ...

27

May

African Inventor Assists Curious Infants

During a visit to the U.S., my foreign staff from Congo asked me after dinner one night to go shopping for a “Bumbo chair.” Quite honestly, I had no idea what in the world they were talking about. My children are college-aged so it has been a long time since they were infants. I had ...

6

May

Kerry Addresses Adoptive Families’ Concerns with Kabila

by Caitlin Snyder

in Adoption News, Congo

U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, traveled to Africa last week, and visited the Democratic Republic of Congo. While there, he had a productive meeting with President Kabila and Foreign Minister Tshibanda. Secretary Kerry discussed the current state of international adoptions from DRC during the meeting. He urged President Kabila for a quick resolution to ...

28

Oct

Update: Hope For DRC Adoptions

by MLJ Adoptions

in Congo, MLJ Adoptions

The Hope for DRC Adoptions campaign was started by MLJ Adoptions and several adoptive parents as a way that individuals, attorneys, adoption agencies, adoptive parents and orphan advocates could collaborate, communicate and come together for one cause – to strengthen and stabilize the adoption process in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The focus of ...

3

Oct

The Reality In Congo

I went to Kinshasa, DRC, a few weeks ago. MLJ Adoptions opened its Democratic Republic of Congo program four years ago and the program keeps me very busy. The children and people of Congo, the culture and the country are in my heart. I have developed friendships, working relationships and ties with people and associates ...

24

Sep

Airport to Accommodations: Travel to DRC

by MLJ Adoptions

Flying to the Democratic Repulibc of Congo will take approximately 24-30 hours from the US or Canada. You will be on a plane for quite some time before arriving at your destination. For the flight you will want to dress as comfortably as possible. In my opinion, the purchase of a neck pillow for this ...

3

Sep

Packing for An Adoption Trip to Congo

by MLJ Adoptions

I was recently able to spend a week with several families during their stay in Congo before bringing their children home. Typically families are staying in Congo for three weeks. During this time we discussed how we all would have packed differently in preparation for their stay in DRC. Packing and preparing for an extended ...

2

Aug

Rebels In Congo Face Pressure From United Nations

by MLJ Adoptions

in Adoption News, Congo

On Tuesday, the UN peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo of approximately 19,000, issued an ultimatum to some 30 rebel forces of the unstable eastern area of DRC. Rebels were told that they had a deadline of Thursday at 4:00pm to disarm, or U.N. troops would disarm by force. According to a Christian ...

22

Jul

Advocacy And Hope For DRC Adoptions

by MLJ Adoptions

in Congo, Support Services

International adoption programs in the Democratic Republic of Congo need advocacy! I have seen it before and I see it now. An international adoption program that the U.S. State Department identifies as a problem and then the country is closed to international adoption. This is not a new phenomenon and history will tell you how ...

14

Jan

Join Us in Celebrating At Our Annual Africa Party

by MLJ Adoptions

in Congo, Events

We are excited to announce that we will be holding our 2nd Annual Celebrating Africa Party! We invite you to join the MLJ team, Marie, and other families as we celebrate the rich and unique culture of Africa! Our annual family event will be full of fun activities such as crafts, story telling, dancing, art, ...

4

Jan

More Concerns In Ethiopia

In November the U.S. State Department announced that The Ministry of Women, Children, and Youth Affairs in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia suspended the adoption services of two U.S. adoption agencies as a result of reported abuse of children placed with adoptive families. This all follows further changes and restrictions put into place in Ethiopia for adoptive ...

28

Dec

The Top 10 Reasons To Adopt From the Democratic Republic Of Congo

The U.S. Embassy in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia has reported as of September 12, 2012, the Ministry of Women, Children and Youth Affairs in Ethiopia has temporarily suspended adoption services to two adoption service providers located in the U.S. This adds to the increasing difficulties and frustration experienced by parents trying to adopt from Ethiopia and/or ...

20

Dec

Christmas In The Democratic Republic Of Congo

When I started working at MLJ earlier this year, I knew it would be a learning experience in many ways. That’s an understatement! I started reading everything I could about the Democratic Republic of Congo, the war and political unrest, the orphan crisis, and I couldn’t stop reading. I was stunned that I made it ...

14

Dec

The Continuing Conflict In The Democratic Republic Of Congo

The continuing conflict in the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo, centralized in the city of Goma, is being watched closely by all of Africa. Peace talks continue between the M23 rebel group who initially captured the city and officials representing the government of the Democratic Republic of Congo with both sides making ...

27

Nov

I Am Caucasian But My Boys Are African

by Michele Jackson, JD

I am Caucasian but my boys are African. We live in the same community, same neighborhood, same home and same family, but we are seen very differently. While I have had years to see different color skin, my boys are not quite two years old and can’t see the difference yet. Well, at least cannot ...

23

Nov

Political Unrest in the Democratic Republic of Congo

On Monday, rebel forces known as M23 had overtaken the city of Goma in Eastern D. R. Congo. Initially it was also reported that they had seized the nearby city of Sake. However, conflicting reports now state that there has been resistance in Sake and it is unclear whether this city was successfully seized. Eastern ...

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