More than 11,000 Saudi families have adopted orphans, charity says

RIYADH: More than 11,000 Saudi families have fostered orphaned children, the national foster care association announced on World Adoption Day on Sunday.

The figure was released by the Al-Wedad Charity Association, the only organization authorized by the Kingdom’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development to oversee the national foster care program for orphaned children of unknown parentage, according to the Saudi Press Agency.

The association also launched a new publicity campaign to highlight the heartfelt stories of foster parents and their children.

In a video published by Al-Wedad on X, one adoptive parent said of her child: “When she hugs me, I feel like she’s hugging my heart.”

Another parent said: “I’ve never been as happy in my life, nor heard a word that made me happier than the word ‘Mama’.”