The mothers speak about how involved and useful they now feel in their communities. Health volunteers also advise pregnant women on pre-natal and infant nutritional needs. The district's doctor credits their initiative with the reduction in premature births and increase in birth weights they've seen since the program started. Towards the final phase of each project, the commune makes a wish list for its long-term economic growth. Villagers identify an income-generating scheme for the entire community, such as cargo boats or a milling machine, which they can purchase with a loan from Save the Children.
Families can also take out loans for fertilizer, poultry or mat-making schemes.
To aid in the endeavour, an educational project called the 'Living University' was introduced, where communes, NGOs and government agencies learn first-hand how to identify and maximize their resources to better address their needs. These initiatives allow villagers to escape the cycle of poverty once hunger has been tackled. Most tellingly, the project is still running five years later in the pilot communes, now administered by them alone. People express confidence about the future of their health and community development programme, long after their American friends have left. This approach is in striking contrast to the style of American involvement during the war, and could well point the way for the new era of Vietnam-US cooperation which has just begun.