ADOPTION AND THE LAW IN CAMEROON

ABSTRACT

Adoption is usually done by married persons who cannot have a child of their own. Marriage on one hand is a contract; it is a contract entered into between a man and one or more women. Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally recognized union between people, called spouses, that establishes rights and obligations between them; as well as between them and their children; and between them and their in-laws. It is considered a cultural universal, but the definition of marriage varies between cultures and religions, and over time. Typically, it is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually sexual, are acknowledged or sanctioned. Probably the single greatest deficiency in current Cameroonian adoption law is the lack of any legislative provision dealing with access to birth and adoption information. The general objective of this work therefore is to examine the law on adoption in Cameroon. In order to achieve this, the work adopts the qualitative research methodology. One of the main findings of the work is that individuals may marry for several reasons, including legal, social, libidinal, emotional, financial, spiritual, and religious purposes. Whom they marry may be influenced by gender, socially determined rules of incest, prescriptive marriage rules, parental choice and individual desire and that in some cases these married persons may decide to go in for adoption. The work strongly recommends that adoption information should be made easily accessible to the population.

1.4.1 GENERAL OBJECTIVE

The general objective of the research is to examine the law on adoption in Cameroon.

1.4.2 SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES

The specific objectives of the study are;

1. To examine how adoption is regulated under international law.
2. To assess the national Legal Framework on adoption in Cameroon.
3. To analyze the institutional framework on adoption in Cameroon.
4. To propose policy recommendations for better ways to carry out adoption in Cameroon.