MANILA – The Philippine Government through the National Authority for Child Care (NACC) is hosting the Regional Workshop on Sharing Experiences on the Effective Implementation of the 1993 Convention in Asia from March 11 to 13 at the Hotel Seda Manila Bay. The event is organized by the Permanent Bureau of the Hague Conference on Private International Laws (HCCH) and co-organized by the NACC.
The regional workshop aims to assess the current implementation of the 1993 Adoption Convention in the region and share challenges and good practices related to its practical operation, with focus on the principle of subsidiarity.
Participants to the workshop are representatives from Asian States that are Parties to the Convention of the Protection of Children and Co-operation in respect of Intercountry Adoption (1993 Adoption Convention) such as Cambodia, China, India, Mongolia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and VietNam as well as States that are not yet Party to the Convention such as Laos and the Republic of South Korea.
“We are honored to host the 2025 regional workshop on sharing Experiences on the Effective
implementation of the 1993 Adoption Convention in Asia. Upon the signing and ratification of the
Convention in 1996, the Philippine Government has taken great strides in ensuring that the best interest of the children is the paramount consideration in adoption,” said NACC Undersecretary Janella Ejercito Estrada.
Among the topics to be discussed are the principle of subsidiarity and child adoptability, adoption procedure, intra-family adoptions, illicit practices in intercountry adoption, financial aspects in intercountry adoption, post-adoption matters, and other HCCH Children’s Conventions.
“A child is only considered for inter-country adoption if there are no families within the region and within the Philippines that can be matched to these children and it is proven that inter-country adoption is the most suitable means of providing a permanent home for the child ,” explained Estrada.
“The Philippines’ adoption and alternative child care programs and services are consistent with the principles of the Convention. The provisions of R.A. 11642 or the Domestic Administrative Adoption and Alternative Child Care Act institutionalized safeguard mechanisms to ensure full protection of children’s rights; and that inter-country adoption will only be resorted to after exhaustion of domestic placement,” Estrada added.
Non-Contracting Parties will also participate to learn more about the Convention and discuss its application with State Parties.
Members of the NACC Council will also participate along with representatives from non-government organizations that include NICEF Philippines and International Social Services (ISS).
The 1993 Adoption Convention is an international legal framework that “protects children and their families against the risks of illegal, irregular, premature or ill-prepared adoptions abroad. The Convention, which operates through a system of national Central Authorities, reinforces the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (Art. 21) and seeks to ensure that inter-country adoptions are made in the best interests of the child and with respect for his or her fundamental rights. It also seeks to prevent the abduction, the sale of, or traffic of children”. To date, there are 106 Contracting Parties to this Convention including the Philippines, where the Convention entered into full effect in 1996.
The NACC was established by virtue of R.A. 11642, as a one-stop quasi-judicial agency under the
Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) to formulate policies and implement streamlined programs and services on the declaration of a Child Legally Available for Adoption, Domestic Adoption, Inter-Country Adoption, and other forms of alternative child care such as foster care, kinship care, family-like care and residential care.
In 2024, the NACC’s Inter-Country Adoption Program received 137 adoption decrees, and entrusted 97 children with foreign adoptive parents. The adoption decrees signifies the recognition of the adoption of the children by the government of the receiving states.
Contact: LOUISIVI J. OLIVA
OIC-Chief, Public Information Division
+63927 965 0318; ljoliva@nacc.gov.ph