please continue to pray...

We'll feel a lot better when we have the official court decree and birth certificate in hand, but we've been told that MOWA has said they will approve the adoption cases that have passed court. Otherwise the suspension still stands.  Obviously, we would love prayers for L's case, specifically that we would receive the court decree and birth certificate this week.

But on a larger scale, we ask for prayers for adoptive families who are literally stuck because of this adoption suspension. Our hearts are breaking for them. We know families who are matched with a child but waiting for MOWA's positive comment and we also know families who have been on the wait list for years and still have not received a referral for a child. Please pray for God's hope, comfort and guidance for these families.

Here is the copy of the official notice on the U.S. State Department's website:

Adoption Alert—Suspension of Adoptions from Ethiopia

On April 21, an official from Ethiopia’s Ministry of Women and Children (MOWA) informed U.S. Embassy Addis Ababa that it is suspending its processing of intercountry adoption cases, effective immediately. The U.S. Department of State does not yet know how long this suspension will last. The Office of Children’s Issues and the Embassy are working with MOWA to seek more information on the terms of the suspension. We will urge MOWA to complete processing of cases that were in progress prior to this suspension.

If you have questions about your pending case, please contact your Adoption Service Provider. You may also write to ConsAdoptionAddis@state.gov if you have questions about an adoption-related visa application or immigrant petition. You may copy the Office of Children’s Issues at Adoption@state.gov on your email to the Embassy if you wish. 

Please continue to monitor adoption.state.gov for updated information on intercountry adoption in Ethiopia.