I borrowed the following post from the "I Support Adoptions" website......we've heard some of the statistics before, but I think is important that we remind ourselves so as not to lose sight of the reality of the orphan crisis.

Abandoned and Orphaned The best available estimate is that 143 million children are abandoned and orphaned worldwide. Less than 1% of orphans are adopted.

Can you make a difference in the life of just one?

Orphanages There are anywhere from two to five million orphans in orphanages worldwide, an estimate that is in-line with the Human Rights Watch World Report. The vast majority of orphans are found in third world nations.

Child Trafficking and Slavery There are more slaves today than any other time of history, many of whom are children. It is estimated that 1.2 million children are trafficked every year for exploitation purposes such as forced labor, commercial sexual exploitation and other forms of slavery.

Orphans In Africa Since 1990, the number of orphans from all causes has decreased in Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, but has risen by 50% in Sub-Saharan Africa (from 30.9 million to 53.1 million). The government of Kenya predicts that within the next 10 years, 1 out of every 5 children will be an orphan.

The Most Vulnerable and Alone Every 2.2 seconds, a child loses a parent due to war, natural disaster, poverty, disease and other causes. Every 15 seconds, a child somewhere in the world dies from a water-related disease such as parasite and worm infection, diarrhea or typhoid.

At-Risk Children More than 1 billion people live on less than a dollar a day. One of our goals at I Support Adoptions is to prevent children from being abandoned or placed for adoption and help biological families care for their children.

Resources: UNICEF, UN, SOS, Feed the Children