Surrogate parenting has become the most desirable Assisted Reproductive method among the struggling infertile couples. But its ‘associated costs’ and ‘legal complexities’ are the major concerns among the prospective parents. And it is important to consider that prospective parents are responsible for bearing all the surrogacy cost in Malawi. 

In Malawi, surrogacy is still an emerging Assisted Reproductive practice, with no specific legal regulations set yet, with very few specialized fertility centers. Despite limited infrastructure, these can play the important factors in making up the overall surrogacy costs. The costs comprise of medical expenses, surrogate compensation, legal fees, agency fees, etc. 

Through this article, we are going to make you aware of the surrogacy method and its associated costs in Malawi. 

Surrogacy- A Third Party Reproduction 

‘Surrogacy’ or we can say it like ‘Surrogacy Motherhood’, is a medical journey along with the legal guidance to assist the infertile couples to achieve their parenthood. 

Surrogacy, a kind of advanced Assisted Reproductive Method, which uses the third party reproduction concept. A third party female (surrogate) agrees to carry the child pregnancy for the infertile couples, delivering and giving up custody rights to the intended couple. 

The third party female, known as surrogates, will have to meet the stricter health requirements (both mentally & physically) in order to help another couple to have their baby. While the intended couples will have to prove their infertility or medical conditions, for having surrogacy methods to become parents. 

Based on the kind of surrogacy arrangement (Traditional or Gestational), the surrogate will share mainly two different kinds of relation with the child- 

1. Traditional Surrogacy involves creating the embryo with the help of the surrogate’s eggs with the intended father’s sperm. By doing this way, the surrogate will share the biological relationship with the child. 
2. Gestational Surrogacy involves creating the embryo with the help of the intended female’s eggs with the intended father’s sperm. By doing this way, both intended partners will share a biological relationship with the child.

Reasons Why Couples Choose to Pursue it

Not all can embrace the parenthood through the surrogacy method, let’s see the possible reasons where couple could pursue surrogacy:

• When the intended female is having a medical problem with her uterus and carrying pregnancy is nearly impossible for her. 
• When the intended female had previously done ‘hysterectomy (uterus removed). 
• When the intended female will face a life riskier or impossible pregnancy. 

Surrogacy Contractual Agreement

Surrogacy contractual agreement is a comprehensive legal document containing terms, which governs the surrogacy arrangement. It is usually made in such a way that it will be suitable based on the type of surrogacy arrangement (International/Domestic) and will be in plain english with no or less complex words. 

It usually includes the following listed contents:

• Confidentiality & Rights protection term
• Surrogate’s payment, reimbursements & insurance 
• Surrogate’s responsibilities
• Duration & Termination 
• Abortion/Termination/Miscarriage pregnancy provision
• Custody & Parental Rights 
• Breach of Agreement 
• Any Amendments Provision
• Medical Risks and Compensation for any loss
• Arrangement based on International/Domestic

However, these surrogacy contracts’s contents will be drafted based on the respective reproductive laws in the country. Let’s see the surrogacy regulations in Malawi. 

How Does the Surrogacy Regulations Work in Malawi?

Considering the current time period, the country doesn’t have any surrogacy regulations for the Malawian people. Surrogacy is not prohibited by the legal authorities and is not penalized when someone wants to opt for the surrogacy procedure. It is meant that surrogacy will be practiced in the ‘grey area’ or ‘legal vacuum.’

However, if you still want to go for the surrogacy method to have your child, you need to consult first with the legal experts/professionals who can help you to deal with the legal complexity of the procedure. They could advise you about the drafting and agreement of legal contracts. They also help you with getting the parental rights over the children, after the birth of the child. 

Now, let’s see what it would cost you if you opted for surrogacy in Malawi. 

The Estimated Surrogacy Cost in Malawi

Due to the lack of adequate number of fertility centers and the access to advanced fertility treatments in the country, you can expect the pricing would be a little bit higher for the common people. 

The estimated surrogacy cost in Malawi ranges between $25,000 – $35,000. However, these surrogacy costs include several cost components which can vary depending on various factors. We are going to learn about all the included cost components.

Complete Surrogate Cost Breakup in Malawi

Here is the provided table which details about the several cost components with their respective cost ranges. 

Included Cost Components	Cost Range (Malawian Kwacha (MWK))	Cost Range (USD)
Compensation to Surrogate	MWK150,000 – MWK3 00,000	$5,000 – $10,000
IVF/Artificial Insemination	MWK43,000 – MWK48,000	$2,000 – $5,500
Medical Procedure Expenses	MWK70,000 – MWK140,000	$3,000 – $5,000
Legal Process Expenses	MWK30,000 – MWK80,000	$1,000 – $3,200
Agencies/Clinics Charges	MWK30,000 – MWK85,000	$1,500 – $3,000
Additional Expenses	MWK50,000 – MWK100,000	$2,300 – $4,500

Here is the detailed description for the all provided surrogacy cost components which can help you to understand the overall cost structuring. 

1. Compensation to Surrogate: This cost component will be the important one and one of the major part of the overall cost. This usually includes all prenatal care expenses such as regular medical checkups, medical assistance, travel/house allowances, foods & Nutritions needs, medications/supplements, Compulsory health insurance, etc. 
2. IVF or Artificial Insemination Procedure Costing: This is one of another major cost component after the compensation to the surrogates. This will be cost on a per cycle basis. These will include the major procedures such as Ovarian Hyperstimulation, Egg & Sperm Retrieval, Embryo formation & its culture in the IVF labs, and embryo transfer procedure, etc. 
3. Medical Expensess: The medical expenses include the major chunks of medical procedure, usually consisting of all the medical examinations/screenings/diagnostic testing, psychological evaluations, hormonal medications, delivery charges, expert appointments, etc.
4. Legal Expenses: Legal expenses will include the cost of hiring legal professionals for both parties, legal approval process, documentation & drafting of contracts, and final parental orders & issuing birth certificates in the name of the intended couples, etc. 
5. Agency/Fertility Clinic Charges: These costs will be charged by the surrogacy agencies or fertility clinics, which acts as an administrator which helps to find the suitable surrogate match, provide access to experienced fertility experts, and monitor the procedure, etc. 
6. Additional Expenses: These costs includes the cost for taking support of additional procedures such as IVF paired with ICSI/IUI/IMSI, PESA/TESA/MESA/microTESE, PGT testing, Cryopreservation method, or taking support of donor eggs/sperms/embryos, etc. 

Factors That can Affects the Surrogacy Cost in Malawi

Considering all the included cost components, several factors which directly influence the overall pricing for the surrogacy procedure. 

1. Type of Surrogacy Option Opted
2. Access & Availability factor of Proper Medical Infrastructure  
3. Fertility Clinic’s Reputation & its Availability Factor
4. Fertility Experts Fees/Charges & its Availability Factor
5. Surrogate Compensation
6. Medical Expenses
7. Involvement of Donor Eggs/Sperms/Embryos
8. IVF is paired with the other ART technologies such as ICSI, IUI, IMSI, PGT testing, etc. 
9. Usage of other ART techs such as FET, PESA, TESA, MESA, microTESE, Laser-Assisted Hatching, PICSI, etc. 

Why ‘Med Fertility Center Malawi’ Could Be Your Best & Affordable Choice for Surrogacy?

Med Fertility Center Malawi is one of the leading IVF & surrogacy centers in the country. The center has the mission to provide compassionate & comprehensive ‘Reproductive Care’. The center can complete its mission with the advanced medical infrastructure (state-of-the-art) & infertility experts. The center wants to remove the obstacles of infertility from your life to achieve the dream of parenthood. 

Here’s why you should trust us for your infertility treatments, especially for IVF & Surrogacy:

1. We have the excellence of over 30 years in the infertility treatment field.
2. We carefully understand the needs of the potential couples to provide an excellent medically customized plan. 
3. We have the compassion to blend cutting-edge medical science with compassionate care & solution care. 
4. We have provided guidance to over 2,500 successful IVF pregnancies.
5. We also understand that ‘love is for everyone’ that’s why we offer surrogacy & IVF to the LGBTQ community. 

We facilitate the proper guidance throughout the journey for you to create the family you have envisioned. Reach out to our website to know more, https://medfertility.com/. 

Ready to book a free consultation with us, call us here, +7 702 276 4572, or email your query to info@medfertility.com

Conclusions

Through this article, we have provided how the overall surrogacy cost in Malawi would seem like. Even though there is a lack of information, we have provided estimated cost ranges and the included cost components.  

Cost components such as surrogate’s compensation, legal & medical expenses, agency fees, fertility experts & clinics charges, etc. are the important ones to take into consideration while making budget plans. 

Believe it or not, but surrogacy has already provided a way to parenthood life for millions of infertile couples. Consider it for yourself by being aware of the full costs to figure out the way to financially manage it. Instead of finding it difficult, think of it as an investment to your child & parenthood. 

Consultations would be a wiser step towards it. 

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