Health education is part of the curriculum in Vietnamese primary schools. However, children were usually requested to learn the lessons by heart, at home. Most of them did not even have a tooth brush!

The program follows this process:

1-Agreement with the authorities, production of specific exercise books for a number of priority topics: oral health, intestinal diseases, worm infection, diseases from mosquitoes (malaria, dengue), vaccinations, the importance of clean water, waste management, the nutritive value of different foods, the importance of breastfeeding, the health of small infants, what to do in case of sickness...

2-Training of the teachers in active pedagogy: over 2500 till today

3-Classes using group work, high participation from the children, practical exercices including teeth brushing once a week on the school playground, followed by mouth rinsing with fluor. The children are in charge of cleaning the school, the toilets etc.

4-Twice a year an evaluation committee visits a selection of schools chosen at random: they test the knowledge of the children, check thecleanliness of their hands, the plaque index, the cleanlines of the school in general... The best schools are rewarded by support to improve their sanitation facilities.

The results of the program are excellent: about 50.000 children in 130 schools are covered every year. Their health improves significantly (the tests include ten different specific criteria). The cost of the program falls every year as the contribution of the schools and the parents increases. In total the cost per child is less than 1 euro/year.

Since 2008 the program expands to all 60 kindergarten as well, thus adding another 12.000 children.