The Head of the Family Division Court, Hon. Justice John Eudes Keitirima, has urged Ugandans to embrace adoption and help raise hundreds of children who have no parents but require proper upbringing.
These remarks were made on March 7, 2024, at Hotel Africana during an Adoption Awareness Conference organised by the Adoptive Parents Association in conjunction with Sanyu Babies Home, the Uganda Child Rights NGO Network (UCRNN), the Children at Risk Action Network (CRANE), Sanyu Babies Home, the Child’s I Foundation, Ekisa Ministries, and Wells of Hope.
Hon. Justice Keitirima stated that records indicate there are about 50,000 children in different care homes across the country that can be adopted because the cost of adoption through courts is now cheaper and that any other challenges along the way can be addressed.
“The application in court requires only 6,000 shillings, and if that is very expensive, then maybe that’s something we need to discuss. For the adoption process, a person who is not a citizen of Uganda, in exceptional circumstances, can adopt a Ugandan child, but the priority now is given to Ugandans mostly,’’ Keitirima noted.
Keitirima added that there’s also a danger of child trafficking, and that’s why at times the adoption process takes a long time due to the thorough screening they have to do before your adoption request is permitted.
According to the Head of the Family Division Court, there’s also a danger of giving a child’s rights to child traffickers, if not well executed, due to a lack of monitoring mechanisms, especially in cases of inter-country adoptions, and this has happened.
However, he urged those who adopt children not to abuse their rights but instead should give them basic needs like education, clothing, shelter, and medical care, to mention but a few, because that is what an adoptive parent should do.
Justice Keitirima warned that those who adopt children and do not give them these basic rights face consequences under Section 109.
“There’s a general provision that says if a person who breaks any of the previous provisions of this Act commits an offence, you will pay a fine of 100,000 shillings, face imprisonment for 6 months, or get both punishments,” he said.
