Tbilisi, Georgia | Unregulated surrogacy has opened up market opportunities in Georgia, EurasiaNet reports. The Surrogate Motherhood Centre, a clinic supported by the Ministry of Health, brokers deals between unemployed women and infertile couples. “Most of the women offering their services to us are desperate,” says Dr Tamar Khachapuridze. “They have children and the family has no money.” The minimum price for gestational surrogacy is normally US$5,000 for Georgian couples. But Dr Khachapuridze hopes to attract more Westerners who will pay twice that amount. “In France,” she says, “couples are looking and waiting for surrogate mothers. Here, it is the other way around.” The Georgian parliament is currently drafting a law on assisted reproduction, but at the moment, there are no restrictions, even on the number of times a woman can be a surrogate. This concerns Dr Khachapuridze, as it could lead to unwitting incest.

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Michael Cook

Michael Cook edits BioEdge, a bioethics newsletter, and MercatorNet, an on-line magazine whose focus is human dignity. He writes from Sydney, Australia.

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