Paudie Coffey (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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Question 569: To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the position regarding Vietnamese Adoptions; the time frame she envisages for the adoption process to reopen; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31873/12]

Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael)
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I am pleased to report that during a week-long visit to Ireland, positive discussions took place between senior officials from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the Adoption Authority of Ireland leading to agreement on the contents of the final administrative arrangements for the resumption of adoptions between Ireland and Vietnam. I have invited the Vietnamese Minister for Justice, Mr. Ha Hung Cuong, to visit in September and I expect that the agreement setting out the administrative arrangements will be signed during his visit. During their visit, the Vietnamese delegation visited with the bodies accredited by the Adoption Authority to facilitate adoptions from Vietnam, ARC and Helping Hands. I am hopeful that the discussions the delegation held with these accredited bodies will greatly assist future interactions. Details in relation to timeframes and processes for adoptions from Vietnam should become clearer following the finalisation of the administrative arrangements by the two Central Authorities.