UN official calls for ban on commercial surrogacy in new report

In a new report, a senior United Nations official is calling for a ban on all forms of surrogacy, detailing the many ways in which the practice is exploitative and promotes violence against women and girls.

Key Takeaways:

• A report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur calls for an end to all surrogacy.

• The report will be presented to the UN General Assembly in October.

• The report details many of the ways in which surrogacy exploits women and girls.

The Details:  

The report of the United Nations Special Rapporteur, Reem Alsalem, was published on August 22 with an intent is to outline “the different manifestations of violence against women and girls in the context of surrogacy." It will be presented to the UN General Assembly in October. 

Economic impacts

Alsalem notes that surrogacy is a booming business – yet surrogate mothers usually receive a relatively small compensation. However, even this amount given to a surrogate in a poor country can be much more income than would be garnered otherwise.

The report states:

In 2023, the global surrogacy market was valued at $14.95 billion and is projected to reach $99.75 billion by 2033. Frequently, surrogate mothers receive only a small fraction of the overall compensation, with the majority of the payment going to intermediaries. Surrogates have reportedly received as little as 10–27.5 per cent of the total payment.

She also warns against a widespread practice of “shopping” for surrogates internationally, in order to find “the least restrictive and least expensive” countries to contract surrogate mothers. 

Effects on children

Notably, Alsalem’s report takes issue with the disservice that surrogacy does to children:

[F]rom birth, they experience immediate separation from the woman who carried them and are transferred to the commissioning parents – a process that can be emotionally and developmentally significant. Individuals with disrupted development of secure attachment are at higher risk of developing mental disorders. In some cases, the transfer of a child is also delayed or complicated by legal uncertainties surrounding the recognition of parentage, nationality or identity, leaving the child in limbo.

Adding to that, she notes the health issues that can occur in children as a result of surrogacy, including higher rates of preterm births, lower birth rates, and an increase in the risk of birth defects.

Violence against women

The report finds that surrogacy promotes violence against women, as many are essentially signing away their rights when they agree to act as a surrogate.

“Numerous women were reportedly denied compensation and left without assistance when they miscarried or did not comply with all the requirements of their contract,” it explains. 

It goes on to state:

In many contracts, surrogate mothers are required to waive, in advance, their right to make their own medical decisions, or to waive the confidentiality of information obtained by doctors during treatments. Other examples of harmful practices reportedly justified using a contract include the implantation of the maximum number of embryos to increase the chances of successful birth, recourse to selective abortion, constant monitoring by the intended parents, including through uninterrupted camera surveillance, and restrictions on freedom of movement…

This violence is further detailed with examples of psychological, physical violence, economic violence, reproductive violence (coerced abortions), and slavery and trafficking.

What We're Hearing:

Several campaign groups have welcomed the report's publication.

"We welcome this report from the UN Special Rapporteur," Lexi Ellingsworth, co-founder of Stop Surrogacy Now, told the Daily Mail.

"We have long understood the deeply coercive nature of surrogacy, even under the so-called 'altruistic' model in the UK. The narrative around this controversial practice needs to change and move away from that which agencies and beneficiaries would have the public believe, and instead fully reflect the reality for women and girls."

Helen Gibson, founder of Surrogacy Concern, agrees. "Surrogacy is exploitative, unethical and cruel to the child who bonds with their mother in utero, irrespective of the egg used in the pregnancy," she said.

The Bottom Line:

In her report's conclusion, Alsalem recommends that the UN take steps to eradicate surrogacy altogether, as she suggests an “international legally binding instrument prohibiting all forms of surrogacy.”

In the meantime, she says, “States must take action to prevent further harm and strengthen the protection of the rights of women and children involved in surrogacy arrangements."