Reception and subsidiarity to relaunch International Adoption within the Mattei Plan for Africa

Important and interesting debate at the Chamber of Deputies in the conference organized by Ai.Bi. and Academy Spadolini: “From the serious crisis of international adoptions to a Mattei Plan for the adoption and foster care of African children”. A very first step to start a dialogue with African countries in the interests of reciprocity, development, communities and cooperation

Institutional greetings, leading personalities and, above all, an interesting debate characterized the conference " From the serious crisis of international adoptions to a Mattei Plan for the adoption and foster care of African children ", held on the afternoon of Tuesday 21 November at the Sala del Cenacolo of the Chamber of Deputies.
At the center of the interventions, the plan to relaunch International Adoption and strengthen International Fostering and Long Distance Adoption in the context of the Mattei Plan for Africa that the current Government is formulating.

Adoption as the only possibility to become children again

The event opened with a greeting from the Hon. Lamberto Dini who, illustrating the reasons and purposes of the Mattei Plan, specified how "The investments that will be promoted cannot only be of an economic and strategic nature, but also humanitarian". In this sense, a Mattei Plan for the Adoption and Fostering of African children can perform a fundamental function of "support to help these countries to help those children who are in disadvantaged conditions of subsistence and abandonment".
Immediately afterwards, the Hon. Simonetta Matone reported her long experience with adoptions as a judge of minors, hoping that the Mattei Plan can "put a firm point" to find new ways that allow both "couples' desires for parenthood" and the “children's needs”.

This was followed by the reading of the message sent by the Hon. Antonio Tajani , in which the Vice President of the Council and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation underlined how the Government is in constant dialogue with the Commission for International Adoptions to find concrete solutions to the decline in adoptions which has occurred in recent years, in the belief that adoption is "for a child, an opportunity for a new and more fortunate life path , in a family warmth never known before or which he has unfortunately lost due to economic hardship, illness or, often, war".

After these introductions, the actual work of the conference opened with the intervention of Prof. Maria Rita Parsi , who in a passionate speech underlined the turning point that the Mattei Plan can represent for African children, citing Portia Nelson's poem Autobiography of change in five short chapters which tells of how one can learn from lived experience and it can be changed. “I'm here to change my ways!” concluded the teacher.

More analytical was the speech by Luigi Tivelli , President of the Giovanni Spadolini Academy of Culture and Politics, who highlighted how Italy, "which in some ways is the country of solidarity, volunteering and the third sector, is also, however , the country of the collapse of the birth rate and adoptions. When launching a Mattei Plan for African countries, one cannot help but think of an issue and a fundamental value that concerns various of these aspects: that of children in serious health conditions and malnutrition in the various African countries. Hence the idea and proposal of a Mattei Plan for the adoption and foster care of African children"

Marco Griffini , President of Ai.Bi , also spoke about the importance of Adoption. – Friends of Children Association : “The truth is that if for us adults there are various possibilities for becoming parents, for an abandoned child adoption remains the only way to become a child again . I think that a programmatic-strategic document which sets itself, like the Mattei plan for Africa, the aim of 'promoting the economic and social development, - i.e. the well-being - of the peoples of the African continent and of preventing the root causes of irregular migration ', cannot fail to also consider the well-being of the most marginal segments of its population.

The Hon. Paolo Trancassini , from Fratelli d'Italia, thanked Ai.Bi. for organizing the conference on Adoption and thus "shining a light on an important topic that must be placed at the center of political attention". In this regard, the Honorable Member recalled the bill recently presented to simplify and speed up the procedures for national adoption, always with a view to a work which is hoped to be as shared as possible, in the interest and for the protection of minors.

The journalist and human rights activist Claudia Conte has instead opened an important and necessary window on family foster care, another fundamental form of reception although there is "little information" on it. Also because, once again, taking up the concept already expressed by Tivelli: "The child is not placed at the centre". Yet, Conte underlined: "If we want to build a better world - as Gandhi said - we must start again from children and see the world with their children today".

Returning to International Adoptions, however, the Hon. Elena Bonetti , former Minister for Equal Opportunities and Family Policies, reiterated how we must work to guarantee transparent procedures and reasonable times", in the awareness of how this form of reception represents "a profound commitment to the construction of families and the welfare of minors". “It is certainly necessary to facilitate the procedures – she added – but always pursuing as the primary objective the prevailing interest of the adopted girls and boys and in compliance with the Hague Convention, integrating the adoption and relationship paths with the States with a consolidated international cooperation action".

Senator Carlo Giovanardi , with a message, recalled the "extraordinary" period in which he was President of the CAI, reiterating the importance of international relations. Also touching is the memory in which the MP declared how all the work done to "resolve the impediments of many Italian families and the many abandoned children to whom we have finally given a family" remained "impressed in his heart".

Adoption cannot derogate from the principle of subsidiarity

The work then continued with the speech of Ambassador Sergio Vento , former Italian permanent representative to the UN and Italian Ambassador to Washington, who dedicated an important thought to Long Distance Adoption , an instrument that allows "financing growth of African children "thanks to the support of "private individuals, associations and corporations" and "being able to count on guarantee and control mechanisms".

Vincenzo Starita , however, returned to the topic of adoption : "It is important - stated the Vice President of the CAI - to ensure that in the countries to which one goes for the general agreements envisaged by the Mattei Plan, the topic of adoptions. But always observing the principle of subsidiarity : it must be clear that adoptions must be based on respect for the various countries, without the economic dimension of the relationships prevailing. Furthermore, great care must be taken not to confuse adoption and foster care, as they are two tools that must be clearly distinguished and any misunderstanding regarding their diversity must be dispelled immediately."

Adriano Bordignon , President of the Forum of Family Associations , also insisted on the different ways in which to "decline" attention to people : "We know that birth rates and reception go hand in hand, they are two constitutive elements of the same approach to life and people – he said. On the topic of international cooperation and therefore the valorization of human dignity, an investment in the economy and in people is necessary. Faced with the great need for respect and dignity of the little ones who find themselves in conditions of survival and abandonment, I think that important work is necessary to  enhance families , also from a subsidiary perspective, that is, putting them in the best possible conditions because carry out the task of caring for and raising the people and children entrusted to them. The work is demanding, the good we have before us is great, I think that around this we can set up an alliance that goes beyond words, but which leads to concrete facts".