[arthymom]

One of the statistics that has had me the most troubled since after we accepted our referral is that of birth rates to adoption rates in Guatemala, but I have always wondered how accurate the rate is.

I'm wondering if anyone knows of a reputable source on the percentage of Guatemalan babies given to adoption?

A poster this morning posted the article from the Guat. newspaper that states that it is 1 in every 100. Also, that Guatemala's adoption rate per capita is the highest in the world.

Not looking to debate, only to inform myself. Thanks.

[whereintheworld]

Originally Posted by arthymom

1 in every 100. Also, that Guatemala's adoption rate per capita is the highest in the world.

Those are the only numbers I have seen in a long time. However, they don't take into account unregistered births. Those are pretty impossible to estimate. It is my understanding that if a birth isn't registered within the first 30 days, then the cost of registering it goes up and the process might be more difficult as well. I can imagine that it would be pretty difficult for some women living in remote areas, in the first 30 days, to get to a town to register.

Sadly, I read a quote in the Washington Post in the last year that estimated that 1 in 10 Guatemalans were living illegally in the U.S. And, that for each one here, they were supporting an average of 4 people in Guatemala.

For me, the figure 1 in 100 babies being adopted by U.S. families, now takes on a whole new dimension.

[Quesita]

I have always been troubled when I have heard this statistic quoted as well. However, there is an even more disturbing statistic. According to the World Health Organization, in 2004, 45 out of 1000 children born died before reaching his/her 5th birthday. A few years before, that number was over 50 per 1000 births. A decade before it was 70 per 1000. http://www.who.int/whosis/mort/profi..._guatemala.pdf

In other words, 5 out of every 100 children born in Guatemala will die before reaching age 5.

Many of the children in our families might have contributed to that statistic.

I would also like to point out that I have been told that the 1 out of 100 number we hear so often is the number or registered births, (not actual births) divided by the number of cases registered in PGN.

[JustBarbara]

Yes, the 1 in 100 is the number that I have heard/ read about in the last few years.

[b_fettes]

Hi, I might be wrong but I thought the number was based on the total population which means a smaller number.
I may be wrong

Mary

[SKL]

I would just like to point out that 2.5% of US kids are adopted. This is despite the fact that about a third of babies conceived here are aborted. Therefore, I really question the statement that a 1% adoption rate is the highest in the world. Perhaps the 1% is being compared only to international adoptions from other countries. If that is the case, consider that: (a) in the main countries where adoptions are not relatively difficult, such as China, India, and Russia, abortion is legal and accepted / encouraged as a family planning practice, which is not the case in Guatemala; (b) domestic legal adoptions of indigenous kids in Guatemala are rare, from what I've read, and (c) international adoption policies in most countries are so restrictive that many kids who are available for adoption are left in orphanages instead. Given the above, I do not feel a 1% international adoption rate is surprising at all, even if it is the highest in the world.

I agree with the other posters in that the 1% rate is what I've seen everywhere, as is the approximately 4-5% infant/child mortality rate.

[Devora]

the number or registered births, (not actual births) divided by the number of cases registered in PGN.

If this is the way it's been calculated then there are a few major problems:

- As has already been stated, many births are not registered or are registered years later.

- If it's comparing the registered births in year to the number of cases in PGN in a year then it also doesn't account for the fact that there are also many toddlers and older children who are adopted which would inflate the % if the adoptions are being compared only to the births in the previous year.

- Comparing to the US, from the Evan B Donaldson Adoption Institute website:

One and a Half Million Adopted Children in the United States
There are 1.5 million adopted children in the United States, over 2% of all U.S. children.

1992 Was the Last Year National Adoption Totals Were Gathered. The total number of adoptions each year has not been comprehensively compiled since 1992. While there are reporting mechanisms for foster care and international adoptions, states are not legally required to record the number of private, domestic adoptions. In 1992, the National Center for State Courts gathered adoption totals from a variety of sources, and estimated that 126,951 children were adopted through international, foster care, private agency, independent and step-parent adoptions. NCSC estimated that stepparent adoptions accounted for 42% of all adoptions and foster care adoptions 15%.

But note: these figures for the US include international adoptions so the % of US children adopted is lower than 2%

[monksmom]

SKL made an intersting point. Guatemala is a pro-life country. Our abortion rate is almost 4,000 per day. If moms in this country chose adoption over abortion, our adoption rate would be about 30%. Now isn't that something to think about.

[jeannecr]

I agree with other posters that even if the 1% is true, it must be put in perspective. Not only is there a 4-5% infant mortality rate, but the percentage of children under 5 in Guatemala who are chronically malnourished is 49% (according to the World Bank). That means half the young children in Guatemala are going hungry every single day.

Under these circumstances, why is it so hard to believe that 1% of mothers would choose to place their children?

[arthymom]

Thank you so much everyone for your thoughts.

Quesita, thank you for posting the W.H.O. stat. That does put the 1 in 100 into a different light for me if that is indeed the percentage of registered births. But then why is Guatemala's birth rate higher than that of other Central American countries?

Take care all,

[Devora]

But then why is Guatemala's birth rate higher than that of other Central American countries?

I can't speak to a comparison to other countries, but I can give you some information about birth rates and family planning in Guatemala that may be useful. These are some of the highlights from a 2003 report issued by the Center for Reproductive Rights. You can get the report online through their website. It's an extensive report (100 pages) but not at all difficult to read. It gives lots of background on how birth rates and maternal and child health in Guatemala are related to the government's provision of health care, human rights in Guatemala and domestic law, and recommendations for protecting the right to family planning. Here are a few things that might help in understand the birthrate:

* 43% of the Guatemalan population is below 15 years of age
* annual population growth rate in 1999 was 2.68%
* 75% of Guatemalans live in poverty and 58% in extreme poverty
* life expectancy is 66.5 years (70 years for women, 63.8 years for men); this is one of the lowest life expectancies in Latin America; the highest rates of mortality are from preventable illness, violence and accidents
* almost 60% of Guatemalans (mostly indigenous women) do not have access to health services -- this is the lowest coverage rate in Latin America
* almost 1/3 of people who do use public health systems live 2 hours from the nearest facility
* 25% of the system's medical equipment does not operate reliably and 15% is inoperable; 37% of the facilities are in very poor condition and 28% are closed
* delivery of health services and education is complicated by the diversity of languages in the country; there are 21 Mayan languages in Guatemala and Guatemala has more languages than other Latin American countries; in the indigenous population approximately 1/3 of the people speak only a Mayan language but very few health care providers speak those same languages

* maternal mortality rate is 190/100,000 births; infant mortality is 45 per 1,000 births
* fertility rates vary widely -- from 3.8 among urban mestizo women to 6.8 among rural indigenous women; the overall fertility rate is 5.0
* 38% of married or cohabiting women use some for of contraception and only 26% use a modern method
* although 69% of women know of a family planning method, only 15% use one; while 61% of women in relationships do not want to have more children, only 38% use contraception
* complications from abortion are the second most common cause of death among women in Guatemala

* the average Guatemalan attends 3.2 years of school and in predominantly indigenous areas the figure is lower
* only 50% of girls in rural areas have attended school at all
* the government invests 1.7% of GDP in education, one of the lowest rates in Latin America
* investment in health (including investments for woater, sanitation and environment) usually "hovered below only 1.5% of GNP in recent years, and has never exceedd 2.2% of the GNP"

* "The reality of Guatemalan women's lives is characterized by pervasive discrimination in the economic, political, educational, and health spheres, as well as within the family. For example, patriarchal attitudes among males make it extremely difficult for women to access reproductive health and family planning services without their partner's approval."

* "Despite the great need of its citizens, the Guatemalan government largely has failed to provide even basic health information and services to much of the population. The government has failed to create and fund programs providing health care at local levels and has failed to involve the communities in such programs. In addition it has not adequately leveraged the provision of health information and education as a means of both enabling and exercise of human rights and promoting good health."

* "The current unwritten policy of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Services with respect to family planning is to provide available methods only at the request of the client. There is no department-wide policy regarding the provision of family planning information, except in the context of post-partum care in public facilities. As a result of the lack of a department-wide policy addressing family planning for all women of reproductive age, the availability and quality of counseling in both natural and modern methods of family planning is often deficient and largely depends upon the education and attitudes of the particular providers."

* a 1993 law to address reproductive health and gender equality was vetoed by the president
* A 1998 draft of a national reproductive health policy was "suddenly shelved for political reasons"

[b_fettes]

Devora, thank you for such an indepth analysis.

Mary

[arthymom]

Devora,

I hadn't considered factors such as diversity of languages/dialects (makes perfect sense...Not the case in places such as Honduras) and also that it doesn't rank high in comparison to other CA countries in terms of education and health care. OK, I see more now that the fertility rate is likely not significantly affected by adoptions. Thank you!