Once again I am not the detective that discovered this information. I just thought it was great information and all the information does go in line with the information or agency presents to us. Although our agency tries to give us the warm fuzzy feelings that things are still on track, somewhere in the back of my mind I feel a long long long wait ahead. So I see more fingerprints and homestudy updates in the future :(.
Quote from Terry M. that I have edited for length
Beyond the delays of 4 years of slow-down and back-logged families.... and beyond the many new families, not only from the US, but from other countries things DO NOT move fast in Bulgaria. There are several things that ALWAYS slow down the process:
1. You know about summer slowdowns already, many companies simply shut down in Bulgaria for the month of August.
2. Holidays. Theirs government or ours (our Embassy) may be closed. Governmental processes may slow down or stop.
3. Elections. New Ministers, Mayors, Deputy Ministers... Even if they know who is going to get elected, even if nothing in the procedure is going to change. As the election approaches, paperwork always seems to slow down. After the election it always takes a couple months, at the very least, to get things going again.
4. Bulgarian culture. Most of the time Bulgarian social workers and Social Home Directors/staff will tell you the best possible outcome. This is cultural. To utter something out loud is to make it come true.... so one should never verbalize that the wait for children may be long because that would make it so. If you say the wait will be short, then that will be so.... supposedly.
5. Negative press. Anytime there is any kind of international negative press about Bulgarian orphanages, about the government, etc... things slow down, or stop.
6. New adoption procedures, laws, regulations, amendments, new or newly perceived Hague Convention issues.
7. Kids over 3, special needs, sibling groups. There have always been way more kids in Bulgarian orphanages in these groups that are waiting for families. They will always be a priority in placement. People who waited for healthy kids under 3 sometimes waited years, even in the pre-2004 days.
8. How popular the country is becoming. How many adoption agencies have new Bulgaria programs. How many new countries have "discovered" adoption from Bulgaria.
