Reducing the Number of Orphans in Africa

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Recommended: Perceived benefits of adoption

Every fifteen seconds, another child becomes an orphans in Africa. Over twenty million children loose one or both of their parents to AIDS/HIV each year. Adults in Africa are dying rapidly, due to poor living conditions and bad health, leaving their children behind to care for themselves and each other. The number of vulnerable orphans in Africa can be significantly reduced with the help of others.
When a child becomes an orphan, the extended family of the child has the option of adopting them. This is known as domestic adoption. It is currently the most effective solution for orphans because they quickly receive a new home. When the orphan is domestically adopted they are able to live with family, whom they know and trust. They are also able to continue to speak the same langue and experience the same culture. This mitigates the transition so it’s much less traumatic for the child. However, in many cases, the extended family of the orphan already has so many children and cannot afford to care for any more. Unfortunately, these children are not as lucky as others and are sent to an orphanage, waiting day by day for some place to call home. In the orphanages, the children often share small beds and enough food, clothes and shoes for all of the children aren’t always available. Most orphanages are very straight-laced and stringent due to the fact that very few adults are caring for an abundance of unwieldy children. Living in an orphanage is not equitable to the young children. These children are very needy as well because of the trauma that they have just gone through with loosing their parents. Instead of getting extra attention and care they have to share the time with many other children.
Through international adoption...

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...e health and living conditions, orphans should continue to be adopted until sickness are eliminated. After diseases are stopped, parents will be able to care for their children, and the number of orphans should drop significantly.

Improving living conditions to keep more adults alive, and fewer children as orphans, seems to be the best option. It will take a significantly long period of time before it will start taking affect. Consequently, domestic adoption is the best solution currently. It provides an immediate, safe home for the orphans with extended family members they know and love. International adoption is also another good option, but the process also takes a great deal of time. With the help of beneficent people and these three basic, but affective solutions, the problem of the remarkable number of meritorious orphans in Africa can be reduced extremely.

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