There are different types of adoption (see Figure 1). Sanders (2012) identifies four main types of adoption: domestic adoption, international adoption, interracial adoption and foster care. However, this work conceptualises adoption into three categories based on mode, practice and location. Under the mode, adoption can be formal or informal. Informal adoption significantly involves foster care or fostering by a relative or non-relative. In practice, child adoption could be open or closed. An open child adoption is further divided into two types: semi-open and fully open adoption. In practice, both open and closed adoption could be public or private. Based on the location, adoption can be classified into domestic (local) adoption and international adoption. Domestic adoption can be interstate or intrastate, while international adoption could be transracial. In all the categories of adoption, the processes of adopting a child can also be legal or illegal, depending on the procedures involved.

Adoption practices vary significantly across national and cultural contexts, shaped by differences in legal frameworks, social norms and child welfare priorities. In the US, adoption has evolved towards greater openness and transparency. Open adoption, where birth and adoptive parents maintain some form of contact, has grown in popularity (Grigoropoulos 2022). The US’ adoption laws prioritise the ‘best interests of the child’. Thus, it enforces strict social, psychological and financial requirements for adoptive parents. International adoption has also been prominent in the US, although it has become more tightly regulated in recent decades following the Hague Adoption Convention (Rotabi et al. 2012). In the UK, adoption is primarily child-centred, deeply embedded within the broader framework of child protection. Reformed by the Adoption and Children Act 2002, the system grants adoptive parents equal status as legal parents and streamlines procedures to place children more quickly into permanent families (Ball 2005). Unlike the US and UK model of adoption practice, which places a stronger emphasis on the state’s role in safeguarding vulnerable children, with most adoptions involving children from the public care system rather than voluntary relinquishment by birth parents (Buivydaite et al. 2022).

In India, religion and caste have a strong influence on adoption. Under the Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act (1956), Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Sikhs can legally adopt children and gain full parental rights. However, Muslims, Christians and Parsis traditionally had access only to guardianship under the Guardians and Wards Act (1890), which did not provide them with full inheritance rights (Ashokan 2021). The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act (2015) now allows all communities to adopt formally, but cultural and religious beliefs continue to affect adoption rates (Agrawal 2025). Policies regulating population and gender dynamics have affected the practice of adoption in China. For decades, the ‘one-child policy’ (1979–2015) created a surge in abandoned children, particularly girls, because of a preference for sons (Bao et al. 2023). This resulted in one of the largest waves of international adoptions in history, with thousands of Chinese children adopted by families in North America and Europe (Settles et al. 2012). Recent changes in the law encouraged domestic adoption, but cultural preferences for bloodlines remain strong, limiting its prevalence.

Adoption is legally recognised in South Africa, under the Children’s Act 38 of 2005, and is shaped by socio-cultural dynamics. There is a strong preference for kinship or informal care over formal adoption, reflecting the communal orientation of African societies (Luyt & Swartz 2022; Buckenberger 2020). Formal adoption is less frequent compared to informal foster caregiving arrangements, but it is increasingly promoted by child welfare agencies to provide permanent homes for orphans. In Kenya, the Children Act of 2001 made adoption permissible, putting the child’s safety and best interests first. However, adoption is still relatively rare in Kenya because of bureaucratic procedures, social stigma and cultural resistance to breaking biological family ties (Wegar 2000). Instead, kinship care continues to be the dominant mode of care for orphaned or abandoned children, a pattern seen in many cultures in sub-Saharan Africa (Stuckenbruck & Roby 2017). In Ethiopia, adoption gained global attention in the early 2000s because of high numbers of international adoptions, particularly to the US. Poverty and the HIV and AIDS crisis made many children vulnerable, making international adoption a widespread practice (Adu 2021). However, amid concerns of child trafficking and exploitation, Ethiopia in 2008 banned international adoptions. Instead, it places emphasis on domestic placements and family-based care (National Council for Adoption 2025).

Poverty exerts a significant impact on child adoption globally, affecting both the supply and demand aspects of the practice. In many low- and middle-income nations, economic hardship remains a major reason parents often relinquish their children. This is because parents who are having trouble with financial insecurity may not be able to meet their children’s basic requirements, which makes it more likely that they will go to an institution or be adopted (Fernandez 2019). Poverty also intersects with larger structural inequities, such as limited access to social assistance systems, inadequate healthcare and weak child protection frameworks. These factors increase family vulnerability and pressure them to adopt (Agbeno et al. 2020). On the receiving end, prospective adoptive parents in wealthier nations often see international adoption as a way to give children chances that they wouldn’t have in their home countries. This makes the flow of adoptions around the world even more unequal in terms of wealth and power (Harf et al. 2015). Poverty is not just a contextual factor; it is also a structural force that drives the ethical discussions about child adoption around the world.

Adoption practices around the world are shaped by a mix of cultural traditions, religious beliefs and changing laws. In numerous civilisations, informal care arrangements, including kinship fostering, have traditionally superseded formal legal adoption. But adoption habits have slowly changed because of more people moving to cities, families changing and reforms in child welfare. These instances show that adoption is never only a legal act; it is always part of larger cultural, social and historical settings.

Children are priceless in Igbo culture; they bring happiness and joy to homes. Like in the Chadian proverb, in the Igbo society, ‘A woman without children is like a tree without leaves’ (Sonko 1994). A marriage relationship without children in the Igbo cultural milieu is perceived as an incomplete institution. In such homes, the relationship is characterised by rancour, bitterness and quarrelling, and is devoid of pleasure and happiness. Every marriage in Igbo society earnestly desires parenthood. In a traditional Igbo society, the number of children in a family is often seen as a measure of the family’s wealth. This is because children are the source of support in the areas of farm work and other domestic chores. Ohaeri, Oahimijie and Ingwu (2019) note that the consequences of infertility include economic hardship, social isolation, violence and denial of proper death rites. Any man who has no children has lost access to his family inheritance and, consequently, faces deprivation and poverty (Dyer 2007).

Infertility carries a lot of burden in Igbo society, ranging from social isolation, humiliation and stigmatisation. Olanike, Osamor and Ownmi (2015) observe that after marriage, family members, in-laws and friends wait expectantly for news of pregnancy and childbirth. When such expectations are not met immediately, social stigma, psycho-social pressures and intense pressures follow suit. In extreme cases, women are personally blamed and labelled for the situation. Onuoha (2014) concurs that women in Igbo society are held responsible for virtually all cases of infertility. In the same vein, Nwoga (2013:705) asserts that ‘In Igboland, the number of a woman’s children in her husband’s house determines her stay there’. Childless women are often less regarded in traditional Igbo society, and in the demise of their husbands, they cannot lay any claim to their husbands’ properties. Additionally, Oladokun et al. (2009) observes that infertile couples are also not allowed to lead important family functions and events in Africa.

Children are highly valued in Igbo society. Thus, Igbo idioms postulate that Uru ka na nwa [Children hold the significant gain] and ife adi ka nwa [Nothing is comparable to children]. Children are of great significance in Igbo society. They secure marital ties, confer social status on the married couple, secure rights of property and inheritance, maintain the family lineage and satisfy emotional needs (Gerrand 2017). Children symbolise the past, present and future. The past, because they are seen as the reincarnated ancestor who has come with fortune and goodwill to their families.

The traditional African society has a way of caring for children without parents and parents without children. Stuckenbruck (2013:8), talking about childcare in African society, stated that there have always been a variety of childcare patterns in African communities. Howel (2009) notes that in some parts of West African culture, many vulnerable children were raised by individuals who were not their biological parents. He argues that this practice, which is not a form of adoption but fostering, is aimed at strengthening family ties. Nnama-Okechukwu, Anazonwu and Okoye (2020) observe that in the Igbo traditional setting, the extended families have to decide how orphans or vulnerable children are given to caregivers. The Igbos believe that the training of a child is not a duty of the biological parent alone. Thus, fostering is a culturally acceptable way of raising a child in Igbo society. According to Kayong-Male and Onyango (1984:10), ‘Fostering was traditionally and still is a common feature of the African family’. Children are fostered by their close relatives, mostly those without children. Ele (2018) compares child fostering in Igbo society and child adoption. He noted that ‘child fostering is ihenwa (family relationship) while child adoption is igote na ire nwa (buying and selling of children)’.

In recent times, with the shift from communal living to individualistic living, fostering in Africa is declining. The impact of modernisation and globalisation on the traditional culture of Africans cannot be ruled out. According to Olanike et al. (2015), globalisation, urbanisation and economic and political instability, among others, have made it difficult to sustain the usual communal spirit, which provided support in raising children. People leave the rural areas for urban areas and cities in significant numbers, thereby limiting the human and financial resources available to provide adequate care for children. Wengi (1998) notes that traditional child adoption (fostering) is weakened because of the overwhelming number of destitute children. They are thereby making children who are orphaned or less privileged available for any form of care.

Enugu-Ezike is a community situated in Enugu State, Southeast Nigeria. The community, according to Chukwuemeke (2015), has 36 villages with royal stools in addition to some other newly created politically autonomous communities. Enugu-Ezike covers the land area of 29 km² with a population of 259 431 (National Population Commission 2006). Enugu-Ezike people are well known for their resilience in their cultural beliefs; notable among them are the laws guiding marital and family life (Sebs-Okolo et al. 2023). The language of the people is Igbo, which is widely spoken among the indigenes. However, some of the people speak the Idoma and Igala languages. The religion of the Enugu-Ezike people is predominantly Christianity, though a good number of them practise traditional African religion and Islam. According to Eya (1993), Christianity entered Enugu-Ezike as far back as 1929. People in this area, just like in all Igbo societies, are well known for their paternal lineage system. Any child whose paternal root is unknown is not given a proper place among ‘his people’.

The concept of adoption is not alien to biblical tradition. It was widely practised among the Jews right from the time of Abraham. Waters (2012) highlights that adoption is not uniquely a Christian practice, but it is a distinctive Christian act that pertains to neighbourly love and familial belonging. The Bible contains several references to adoption, both as a physical practice and a spiritual metaphor. In Exodus 1:15–22, Pharaoh’s daughter rescued Moses from the Nile and adopted him as her own. Mordecai adopted his orphaned cousin Esther, who later became queen under his guidance (Esther 2: 7; 15). In Matthew 1:18–25, Joseph accepted Jesus as his legal son, fulfilling his role as a faithful adoptive father in God’s redemption plan. Additionally, Romans 8:15 and Ephesians 1:5 describe believers as adopted sons into God’s family through Christ, granting them full inheritance rights with Jesus as his children. Despite these biblical precedents, adoption in modern contexts does not align with the traditional lineage practice of Enugu-Ezike people. Among the Christians, though the practice is highly promoted as an act of compassion, they still uphold their cultural norms that prioritise biological kinship over adoptive ties. This tension highlights the ongoing need to reconcile biblical principle with local customs.

In this present study, we examined the attitude and response of Christians to child adoption. With the increase in the number of children whose paternal lineage is in doubt, and Christian couples without children who have a need for adoption, it is imperative to interrogate this cultural standing and its implications for the people’s well-being. This significance is amplified by the fact that most people in the study area are Christians, whose doctrine teaches brotherly love and inclusivity. Understanding the negative treatment of adopted children and the Christ-like life is of paramount importance. To reach this goal, our main research question was framed as follows. This study will be guided by these research questions: ‘What are the attitudes of Christians towards child adoption?’ Our inquiry delved into the level of awareness and acceptance of the practice of child adoption, seeking to gain insight into the reasons affecting the attitude of Christians towards adoption, socio-religious implications and the benefits and challenges of child adoption.

The study comprised 32 individuals aged 18 years and above, including 14 males and 18 females. Of these, 24 participants were married, while 8 were single. Among the participants, six reported experiencing fertility changes and did not have children at the time of the interview. All participants were Christians and were geographically dispersed across the 33 villages that make up the community.

The study adopted a qualitative phenomenological approach to identify and understand phenomena by exploring individuals’ perceptions and actions within a given situation. This approach involves investigating and describing phenomena as consciously experienced, keeping them free from preconception and presupposition (Lewis 2006). We conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews using a flexible interview guide (see Box 1) that allows for meaningful self-expression and dialogue in areas where gaps in the literature have been identified. This approach helped us to understand the informant’s experiences without making previous assumptions about the objective reality of those experiences (Holloway & Wheeler 1996:117). The interviews were recorded verbatim, allowing the researchers to refer to the original narrative and ensure accuracy.

Purposive sampling was employed to ensure diverse group participation and a broad geographic representation that encompassed all regions in Enugu-Ezike. Participants were selected based on their willingness to participate in the study. Inclusive criteria include being aged 18 and above, and participants must be Christians and natives of Enugu-Ezike. The 32 interviewees were recruited physically from the 33 villages in the community, one from each village. The participants were given a comprehensive explanation of the research aim, and informed consent was obtained.

Data generated from the interviews were systematically organised, compiled and coded. The researchers employed thematic content analysis using the transcribed interview recordings. In the first stage, open coding was conducted to identify key ideas and patterns from the data. In the second stage, these patterns were organised into coherent themes. The researchers conducted their analysis independently before reviewing and reconciling their selected themes to ensure accuracy and consistency. The findings were presented in detail, with variables categorised into themes (see Table 1) and supported by direct quotes from the respondents to bring out their exact messages, thereby ensuring the approach reflected the realities grounded in specific contexts.

Ethical clearance to conduct this study was obtained from the University of Nigeria Nsukka Research Ethics Committee.

The participants expressed their views on the meaning of child adoption, child adoption practice in the community and the level of the practice. Their views are captured under the following themes.

The participants identified some reasons to be responsible for the attitude against child adoption in Enugu-Ezike.