Article 24: Adoption States Parties which recognize the system of adoption shall ensure that the best interest of the child shall be the paramount consideration and they shall: (a) establish competent authorities to determine matters of adoption and ensure that the adoption is carried out in conformity with applicable laws and procedures and on the basis of all relevant and reliable information, that the adoption is permissible in view of the child's status concerning parents, relatives and guardians and that, if necessary, the appropriate persons concerned have given their informed consent to the adoption on the basis of appropriate counselling; (b) recognize that inter-country adoption in those States who have ratified or adhered to the International Convention on the Rights of the Child or this Charter, may, as the last resort, be considered as an alternative means of a child's care, if the child cannot be placed in a foster or an adoptive family or cannot in any suitable manner be cared for in the child's country of origin; (c) ensure that the child affected by inter-country adoption enjoys safeguards and standards equivalent to those existing in the case of national adoption; (d) take all appropriate measures to ensure that in inter-country adoption, the placement does not result in trafficking or improper financial gain for those who try to adopt a child; (e) promote, where appropriate, the objectives of this Article by concluding bilateral or multilateral arrangements or agreements, and endeavour, within this framework to ensure that the placement of the child in another country is carried out by competent authorities or organs; (f) establish a machinery to monitor the well-being of the adopted child. 146. Under the 2010 amendment of the Constitution, there is now provision for State assistance to children under special circumstances. State assistance applies to all children, but particularly the following categories have been identified: orphans, children with disabilities and other children in situations of disadvantage. 147. The CCPJA has made extensive provision for alternative care for children. There are several forms of alternative care that are recognized as a matter of law or practice in Malawi. There are a number of common terms used and practised in this regard. 148. Community based Care is the direct care role assumed by the leadership or members of the community in their own homes; Foster Care is placement of a child in a foster home or with a foster parent; Foster Home means a home approved by the minister for the 44 | P a g e