The activities of coordination, following-up and assessment of the Integrated Development Program of the Northwestern Region of Brazil - POLONOROESTE - are analised, based on the general and specific objectives and goals of the program, and on partial results achieved. Special emphasis was given on the technical appraisal of the research projects, under supervision of the Coordination of the Health Sciences of CNPq - (National Council for Science and Technology Development). Following the year of 1986, it was decided to go deeper on the auditing activities, as well as assistance, follow-up in a continuous way, and training of local professional in more developed centers. Since Science and Technology have had an increasingly pervasive influence on almost every aspect of human affairs, the results of the research projects are likely to have major beneficial effects on the society, and, in this particular case, among those communities linked to the "POLONOROESTE". After five years, the results of this investment provide information regarding our position in this Project, what investigations and approaches appear most likely to yield further investigation, and what we might do, to reach a state of better planning and management strategies. Presenting such a set of perspectives and assembling the views and results of some of the foremost researchers of the present health research project, their results are showed out and will give support to government members in planning, execution, and evaluating the effectiveness and eficacy of responses to the community needs. The task of preparing this special issue belongs to the researchers involved with the "POLONOROESTE", and to the Editorial review of Dr. Mario Montenegro and Dr. José Brandão Neto. It has certainly been extremely grateful to CNPq police-makers to have had the opportunity of managing this program and apreciating the relevance of the results presently published.