We have 2 beautiful children adopted through Americans for African Adoptions - both from Ethiopia and adopted at separate times. This means that we were greatly satisfied with our first experience with AFAA and went back for a second adoption that went just as smoothly. The director, Cheryl Carter-Shotts, is an amazing woman who works incredibily hard to bring these children home and pays herself a pitance to do it. Unfortunately, there are many people who have no idea what it is like to do business of any kind in a third world country, much less something as complicated as an adoption. These people want things to move along at a set pace and schedule like in America, and they just don't. AFAA has some of the most reasonable prices, which many find attractive. No agency of the size of AFAA can predict or prevent the hurdles that come with working in Africa where people are out to make a quick buck (and do so gladly at the expesne of innocent children and waiting families), where the rules change constantly, where the officials in charge change often, where courts close for months at a time, where the electricity is unpredictable and cultural norms are so vastly different than ours. Cheryl has spent nearly 30 years fighting these issues and bringing home children to waiting families. She works tirelessly to this end.