CHAPTER THREE: DEMOCRACY AND POLITICAL GOVERNANCE employers who convert work areas and provide facilities for disabled persons in the workplace. 367. Persons over 18 years of age with severe disabilities, such as those who are bedridden, tetraplegic, multi-disabled and/or mentally handicapped receive an allowance as provided for by Act 91-25 of 18 December 1991, as amended by Act 02-09 of 8 May 2002. Since January 2003, this allowance has been fixed at DA3000 per month. The state takes (partial or total) care of social security contributions, transport costs and medical care costs for uninsured persons with disabilities. Measures have been taken to help disabled persons gain access to accommodation. Moreover, the state created the National Bureau of Equipment and Accessories for the Disabled, which is responsible for meeting the needs of disabled persons and finding ways for them to re-adapt to the demands of modern life. 368. The report also notes measures the Algerian government has taken to protect disadvantaged persons, which include local departments or units, community development and the national welfare system. Local units are composed of multidisciplinary teams that ensure social action (health, hygiene, education and social aid) where there is a high concentration of destitute people. Community development comprises development projects in economically vulnerable communities, which are participative and respond to the needs of the communities and to improving their lives. The national welfare system favours participation by the beneficiaries of this aid in employment, to ensure their social and professional integration. Welfare is also developed through programmes caring for street children and for abandoned women; providing support to destitute families, one of whose members has been involved in acts of terrorism; providing educational support for children in destitute families; caring for children of destitute families who were victims of terrorism; and providing school transport to and from remote rural areas. 369. The aged are one of the vulnerable groups whose rights are protected by law. Legal protection of the aged arises from section 65 of the Constitution, which states that the duty of parents lies in educating and protecting their children, and that the duty of children lies in aiding and assisting their parents. Family solidarity is thereby preserved and the state encourages the support of aged persons within their family environment. Homes for the aged are specifically reserved for elderly and/or disabled persons without family attachments or resources. The law also provides for retirement pensions. A pension increase was planned for 2006, aimed primarily at setting a minimum pension threshold equal to a guaranteed minimum salary (DA10 000). 370. The CSAR also mentions that if accommodation structures are not a priority because the family is the best option to provide shelter for the elderly, it still remains that there are crucial problems associated with geriatrics as far as parents and the medical body are concerned, for example infrastructure, specific care, training of professionals in the sector, and local means of aid for aged persons without families. 122