‘Policy Build-Up’ in Implementation: The Case of School Meals Provision in Kodungallur, Kerala, India

Abstract

This paper discusses the implementation of the provision of school meals in Kodungallur in Kerala, India as a case of how vertical inter-governmental synergies and horizontal local linkages are brought together in programme design and implementation. The empirical data were collected for a larger cross-national study looking into homegrown school feeding undertaken by Morgan et al commissioned by the World Food Programme. The re-interpretation herein highlights aspects of subsidiarity and its sector-specific policy translation that allows the tackling of food security as it pertains to school children in one municipality in India. The key argument advanced is the relevance of action at multiple levels to allow for what is termed as ‘policy build-up’ so as to achieve all-round effectiveness.