GDLive Newsfeed
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. Learn more about how recipients opt in to share their stories.
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Enrollment
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Transfers
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Completed
Newsfeed > Chelangat's Profile
Chelangat's family
Chelangat
landscapeCountry:
kenya
workOccupation:
Teaching
faceAge:
37
workCampaign
Kenya Large Transfer
There will be no further updates from this completed recipient.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($466 USD)
access_time 2 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I am planning to focus on dairy and poultry farming on a large scale to generate more income. I believe that shortly there will no more be shortage of food, and clothing through these projects.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, Give directly officers are honest, transparent, and free of corruption. For example, all the eligible recipients in our village were enrolled without complaints.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I have been married for the past fifteen years. Since then, we have been struggling to fend for our family and the past five years we have been buying a liter of milk or two at KES 40 a liter. Though I was employed as a government teacher three years ago before my husband who works for a private company. I still couldn't afford to buy a dairy cow because I took a land loan which is still being deducted. Fortunately, when I received the second transfer I spent KES 25,000 on a heifer. This will soon reproduce and be a source of milk and income for my family. Secondly, I completed the construction of my timber-framed house that had stalled using the first transfers. So when I received the second transfer I used KES 15,000 to furnish my house with four sofa sets. These have made my new house very beautiful unlike the old sofas I had which I shifted to the kitchen. Thirdly, I also cleared school fees arrears with KES 10,000 for my daughter in school. This is because the salary that would be used for school fees payment was spent on repayment of a land loan. The remaining KES 5000 was used on household items and clothing. This is because we had food and clothes shortages.
 
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($486 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I was at home with my children and as I was going about with my household duties, I heard my phone ringing hence notifying me of a new message. I decided to check what it was all about and I could not believe my eyes when I saw that it was an SMS saying that we had received the promised transfer of KES 55000 that we had been eagerly waiting for. I was so excited that I immediately called my husband who was away at work to tell him of the good news. He was so happy too on hearing about this as we talked about how the transfer was going to enable us to achieve the plans that we had made. The children who were with me noticed the excitement and they asked me what was going on. I had no choice but to inform them. They were so happy too and we celebrated together.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The transfer brought a very big difference in our lives and that of our children. We were able to continue with the construction of the house that we had left it pending for a while. We borrowed a loan to purchase a piece of land and that is what had taken a toll on us since most of the salary that we earn usually goes to the loan repayment. We were hence not in a position to continue with the construction since the little money that we are left with most of it usually goes to the purchase of household necessities such as food. Thank you so much GiveDirectly for the support.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
We spent most of the transfer money on the construction of the house that we had left pending for a while. We had built the house but we were not able to complete the construction because we lacked enough money to do so. There is land that we wanted to buy and hence we decided to borrow a loan so that we could pay up some of the amounts that was required. We were however not able to complete the payment. I am a teacher and my husband is a banker. The money that we earn, most of it has been going to the repayment of the loan and the little that we remain with, we usually use it on buying the household necessities such as food. We hence appreciate GiveDirectly a lot because they enabled us to achieve our goal.
 
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
 
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I have been struggling to complete my house for 1 year now because the income I get from teaching is not enough to cater for all the basic needs and at the same time build the house completely. Receiving this money means I will be able to finish constructing my three roomed timber house and finally I will move in to a spacious house in a good condition compared to the two-roomed mud house I live in now. My children too who sleep in the kitchen will have their bedroom. This is what I have been yearning for the longest time. I plan on spending KES 50,000 in purchasing cement, sand, timber, and also labor.
What is the happiest part of your day?
I bought a cow mid last year after saving up KES 40,000 for a while. When it gave birth four months ago, it brought me happiness because I no longer buy milk for home consumption. I used to buy 2 litres of milk before for KES 60 per day which was very costly but now I have enough for use and the surplus I sell it. I get 7 liters of milk per day from which I sell 4 liters and this earns me an extra income of KES 120 per day.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
I live on a very small piece of land and I do not have enough to do farming comfortably. I have always desired to be a farmer but because the space I live in is small I cannot expand my farming (planting maize and rearing livestock). This has restricted me into owning only one cow and I also lease an acre of land from a neighbor to plant maize for home consumption and when it is not available I am forced to Purchase food.