The government is aiming to encourage more adoptions, Family Minister Michael Falzon told The Malta Independent, while adding that a change to the current law is planned.

During a press conference addressed by Falzon himself together with Foundation for Social Welfare Services CEO Alfred Grixti last February, it was revealed that over the past 10 years, 234 children had been adopted by Maltese families, with the majority coming from foreign countries.

Later in the year, this newsroom revealed how over the last decade only 27 Maltese children were adopted.

In comments to The Malta Independent now, Minister Falzon said that the government is trying to strengthen local adoptions.

He said that currently the government is making amendments to laws related to children, after which amendments will be made to adoption laws. "Our aim is to always encourage more adoptions," he said. After the laws regarding children are amended at the beginning of next year, he said, the government will be in a position to try and facilitate local adoptions.

He said that when it comes to adopting from foreign countries, those countries are restricting adoptions by parents from outside of their country.

He reiterated that Malta is going to see how it can change its law and facilitate local adoptions.

Currently, the government is offering a grant of up to €10,000 for anyone who opts to adopt a child from a foreign country and €1,000 for those who opt to adopt a child from Malta.

Earlier this year The Malta independent had also interviewed lawyer Josette Sultana, one of the founders of the non-profit organisation Adoption Opportunities, who said: "We have heard stories where birth parents have gone after people who have adopted their children and burnt their car or front door," instilling fear in many other prospective parents when they make plans to adopt a child.

She said that this happens because birth parents would be going through a circle of negativity and many times they would not want to let their child go. Added to this, Malta's small size makes it much easier to locate somebody, and so the majority of approved prospective parents prefer to spend thousands of euros in searching for their future adopted child overseas, she said.