Placed side by side, in their little plastic cradles, they seemed dolls. His existence shook the world. It was the contagious spring of 2020 and the entire planet, locked between four walls in the midst of the outbreak of the pandemic, raised a cry to heaven. thirty five newborn babies were trapped in a kyiv hotel lobby. But, despite having been the Ukrainian land the first they knew, their origins were different. Or they had to be. Actually, there were hundreds of them spread all over Ukraine. Hundreds of babies gestated by Ukrainian surrogate mothers they waited for the man and woman who planted a fertilized egg in foreign wombs to come and collect them. The borders were closed and, during the first months of life, these little ones only saw nurses in front of the papered walls of the Venice Hotel.
Ukraine It has become one of the favorite countries for couples who want a child by surrogacy. In spain, is, together with the United States, the favorite destination and the cheapest to get offspring. Despite the growing popularity of the multimillion-dollar business of surrogacy, or surrogacy, or the surrogacy –each term carries its own ideology–, even there is no official data of all births in the world. It is estimated that some are born 20,000 children a year by this controversial method. But the organizations that defend it, such as the Association Are Our Childrenextend the estimate to 1,000 babies born annually only in Spain.
Despite the belief that they are the homosexual couples the main users of this reproductive practice, the reality is different. They are mostly unions. heterosexualfollowed by those of the same sex and single parent families. As the controversy grows around the idea of hiring women to carry other people’s children, demand increases. The reasons are the problems to have children, either physical or structural, and the adoption restrictions. In the controversial case of Ana Obregón, for example, an adoption would have been unthinkable, since the agencies place the limit of the age difference between mother and child at around 45 years.
A minimum for the pregnant woman
The surrogacy business moves millions around the world. In 2022, it generated about 14,000 million dollars worldwide, according to the consultancy Global Market Insights. The real figures are difficult to verify due to the opacity of the sector. He 25% annual growth causes that by 2032 it is calculated that it will move about 130,000 million dollars, almost 10 times the volume it generates now. This process, which adds an extensive history of abuse and exploitationis so commodified that in conferences like the Black FridaySome agencies offer discounts.
In 2022, the surrogacy business generated some 14,000 million dollars worldwide and the annual growth of 25% means that by 2032 it is estimated that it will move about 130,000 million dollars, almost 10 times more than the volume what generates now
Prices and conditions vary from country to country. Asian destinations, such as Thailand or Indiaare cheaper, with rates of around 40,000 euros, although they are reserved for their national. In Europe, the cheapest place is Ukraine where the minimum price fluctuates in 43.000 euros. Since the outbreak of the war, Georgia It tries to establish itself as an affordable and safe option, with babies for 47,000 euros. Within the European continent, you can also go to Albania, Greece or the Republic czech, which charge between 62,000 and 70,000 euros. In Russia, Mexico, Denmark and South Africalimit the practice to locals only.
Outside the European borders, the most popular destination is USA. There, a baby costs between 100,000 and 200,000 euros. Some states prohibit or limit this practice, but those that do not have detailed catalogs with the medical history, eye color or educational level of the biological mother. According to sources in the sector, where it has extensive legal guarantees, it receives some $40,000. There are other countries, like Canada, Ireland, United Kingdom, Cuba or Australiawhere this practice is only possible altruistic. In other words, the woman does not receive any payment for carrying a baby for nine months, which makes it difficult to find willing people.
“Fertility Tourism”
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Post-pandemic, the multibillion-dollar surrogacy business has rebounded. “Fertility tourism” motivates fathers to look for mothers in countries like the US and wait long enough for the baby get citizenship. Most procedures are done with gestational carriers, which are women who carry the fetus without having any biological relationship with it. Expert voices around the globe have raised alarms about the negative consequences for the baby after separating it from the body that has sheltered it for weeks. Besides, the unprotection and the exploitative conditions to which these women are subjected are increasingly problematic.
Expert voices denounce the negative consequences for the baby when separating it from the body that has sheltered him for weeks, added to the lack of protection and the exploitative conditions to which pregnant women are subjected
In the IndiaFor example, the government put an end to the commercialization of this practice in 2019 due to the exploitation and child trafficking around her. This market, very popular due to its low cost, generated 375 million dollars a year distributed in 3,000 clinics before it was banned. Now, only infertile Indian couples without children can use this service. Still, the exploitation of women It continues to be perpetuated in other corners of the world protected by the desire to have descendants of some privileged people. Because, just as the world was enthralled admiring those 35 newborns in a Ukrainian hotel, no one remembered the belliesof the women who had sheltered them before.