Iran Offers Route to Parenthood for Some Balkan Couples

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Zana Mihaljevic needs $17,000 to become a mum.

The 51-year-old founder of the 'Be a Mum' Foundation, which promotes support for women trying to have a child, suffers from hypogonadism, which means her ovaries do not produce enough hormones.

Having tried IVF, without success, Mihaljevic's believes her only option is surrogacy, but she will have to go abroad.

"I really want children, and I have never given up," she said. "I've been down a long, long road where I've been stopped all the time, doors locked, told I can't do it." But, she told BIRN, "I believe in miracles."

I believe in miracles.

Surrogacy is not allowed in Mihaljevic's native Montenegro; before Russia's invasion in 2022, Ukraine was the most common option, but Mihaljevic is heading instead for Iran.

While surrogacy is forbidden in much of the Middle East, it is allowed in Iran providing that the surrogate mother is married and the parents-to-be are too. And prices are relatively low.

Mihaljevic said she had done her work "to make sure it was safe and reliable" and clarified how she would bring the child back to Montenegro.

"I looked at how they stimulate women with injections and hormones. They use the husband's sperm and the woman's eggs to create a frozen embryo. The other embryos are cryopreserved, and the surrogate is prepared simultaneously. There are several surrogate mothers and surrogate fertilisation procedures, so this is how they guarantee success."

After fertilisation, the couple returns home. "From the moment you find out that your surrogate is pregnant, it's hard to wait the 9 months. Analysis is done to ensure the baby is healthy, there are no miscarriages, and that the surrogate is taking all the...