NEW YORK — The number of foreign children adopted by Americans fell 12 percent in the past year, reaching the lowest level since 1999 as some countries clamped down on the process and others battled with allegations of adoption fraud.
China, which for a decade was the leading source for international adoptions, accounted for the biggest decline and dropped out of the top spot. It was replaced by Guatemala, which almost certainly will lose that status in 2009 because of a corruption-related moratorium on new adoptions imposed by U.S. officials.
Figures for the 2008 fiscal year, released by the State Department on Monday, showed 17,438 adoptions from abroad, down from 19,613 in 2007.
Reasons for the decline vary. China and Russia — the two largest sources of adoptees over the past 15 years — have sought to care for more of their orphans at home, and China has tightened restrictions on applicants.
The numbers were sobering to advocates of international adoption, who expect the drop to continue for 2009.
“There are still tens of millions of orphans around the world — and we know there are millions of Americans willing to adopt these kids,” said Chuck Johnson of the National Council for Adoption.
