CEDAW/C/PHI/4 English Page 64 Day-care centres 263. To ease the multiple burden of mothers, Republic Act 6792 mandates the establishment of day-care centres in every barangay. As of 1993, the Department of Social Welfare and Development, in coordination with local government units, parents' groups and non-governmental organizations were able to construct 20,211 day-care centres nationwide. 264. In addition to the custodial services and comfort being provided by the centre, it also offers additional services and programmes designed to develop positive values, attitudes and behaviour in the children through play and socialization activities. 265. With the growing number of working mothers, the demand for day-care centres is on the rise. Moreover, there is a need to extend the same facility to mothers working on night shift. Assistance to senior citizens 266. The Senior Citizens Welfare Law, Republic Act 7432, was issued to provide benefits to citizens 60 years old and above, whose annual income does not exceed P 60,000.00. The benefits being given are in the form of privileges which include: a discount of 20 per cent on transport services, purchase of medicine, movie houses, restaurants and other recreational facilities. Since the greater number of senior citizens are women, the potential of the law for them is high. 267. Though the benefits provided by the Law can help alleviate the economic burden of senior citizens, a great number of them are not yet aware of this benefit. Information dissemination regarding the Law is not as intensive as it ought to be. 268. Moreover, a provision of the Law which upgrades the pension benefits of retirees from government and private service to be at par with the salaries and benefits of those in actual service is not being implemented. Hence, elderly retirees can hardly cope on their meagre pension, which is based on salaries under the old scales and include only token increases. Many can not buy medicine and other basic needs. Assistance to disabled persons 269. Republic Act 7377, otherwise known as the "Magna Carta for Disabled Persons", provides for rehabilitation and development assistance to disabled persons to enable them to be integrated into the mainstream of society. It enunciates policies aimed at protecting the human rights of the disabled and ensuring that facilities are provided to enable them to become productive and contributing members of society. Implementing the Beijing Platform for Action 270. Among the policy imperatives adopted by the Government to implement the areas of concern of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action are the following: /...