We check in with people at each stage of the cash transfer process to see how things are going. Take a look at some of their stories as they appear here in real-time.
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2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($485 USD)
access_time over 3 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My live is different than how it would have been had I not received the transfer in that I have been able to build for myself an iron-roofed house. I depend on small scale farming and the harvest that we get is only for consumption. This had made it impossible for me to meet some of my goals like building an iron roofed house. In my region, there are so many termites that feed on the grass that is commonly used in roofing houses. With this, one has to change the roof yearly to avoid the house from leaking and this is costly. Building an iron roofed house was my only solution but had not been to due to lack of finances. I am now glad since this is no longer the case
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, GiveDirectly does well by giving out unconditional transfers to people. With the transfers, one is able to cater for their needs and meet their goals as a family. For the instance, with the transfers, I was able to purchase a heifer and two sets of seats, build a house for my family and also purchased a piece of land for my son. I do not see anything that GiveDirectly does not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent my transfer to purchase a heifer worth $200. This will act as an alternative source of income for my family when it calves. Apart from the milk for our consumption, I will be using the income from the sale of surplus to pay school fees for my children. I spent the remaining $339 to purchase a piece of land in our neighboring county for my son. He has been living in this area for long and has been renting a house that he lives in as he goes to work. Purchasing this land will enable him to reduce his monthly expenditure and at least save something in his account since he is planning to build a house there hence he will not be living in a rented house anymore.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($510 USD)
access_time over 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around 9 o'clock in the morning when I received a message notification on my phone. Upon checking it, it was an mpesa message confirming that I had received the promised money. This made me so happy as I knew that I would be able to achieve my dreams that had always seemed impossible to achieve.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that I am now a happy person. This is because I have been able to build a decent kitchen for my family. Due to this, we no longer use the old one that had a leaking roof and walls that had been invested by ants. I am now glad and my heart is at peace knowing that the danger the previous kitchen had posed in our lives is no longer there.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
When I received my transfer, I spent KES 20000 to buy some building materials and to pay the full cost of labor for the construction of a decent kitchen for my family. I decided on this since the roof of the one we had was always leaking during the rainy season and ants had also started invading on the pillars. Also, I spent around KES 4000 to purchase some seat cushions since most of our seats did not have them and it was always very uncomfortable to sit on. From the remaining amount, I spent KES 16000 on a water tank. This will help my family harvest rain water that can be used during dry season. On the remaining amount, I bought food for family.
Enrolled
access_time over 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means an improved housing system. We have been facing difficult moment with our kitchen especially when it rains because water leaks from the roof, and at times, oozes from the ground. During rainy season, we carry cooking utensils to the main house and my 3 children who sleeps there, seeks accommodation elsewhere within the village. This has brought shame to my family. Our ambition therefore, have been to set up another kitchen costing approximately Ksh 30,000 and thus improving our lives.
What is the happiest part of your day?
My normal day entails working as a casual laborer within the village. The work that I do ranges from digging, weeding, to harvesting from morning until late in the evening. The happiest part of my day is in the morning. This is because knowing that there is work to do in the village makes me happy. This also indicates that my family will not go to bed empty stomach.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
A prolonged period of drought has been the biggest hardship we have faced in life. Since we experience a long period of drought, we subsequently experience low yields in our 0.2 acres of land. On this small piece of land, we grow maize purposely for domestic use and we harvesting approximately 1 bag from it. Due to this, we have no surplus for sale to earn extra cash for my household. This forced me to look for an alternative source of income working as a casual laborer (weeding, digging, and harvesting) within the village earning a wage of approximately Ksh 200 a day. This amount of cash is not enough to save and cater to a family of five.
