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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2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($478 USD)
access_time over 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 happy I successfully spent my transfers as we planned. At the moment, I do not have any new goal but to concentrate on rearing my goats so that I can get good out put from them.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, the approach by Give Directly whereby they visited every member of the village, explained all the process to us and later sent money directly to our accounts was excellent. We were also given a chance to decide on how to spend our transfers. I do not have any complaints about the organization.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
Goat farming has been working out for me, especially in meeting my household needs. It is an easier source of income especially when it comes to meeting urgent needs. Besides, my home is located next to a forest making it advantageous to raise goats because they mostly feed on the vegetation. With the second transfer, I added 8 more goats to the 12 I had. I bought 8 goats at 32000 KES. With the increased number of goats, I had to extend the goats' shed. I, therefore, spent 22000 KES on both building materials and construction labor for the goat shed.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($486 USD)
access_time almost 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
After a long struggle with the construction of my new house, I could not wait to finally confirm that full promised amount in my account. I had been checking it almost every day as we drew closer to the speculated dates that we were given by the field officers. With my family, we had enlisted some projects to complete and the house came first followed by the plan to add some goats to the trip since we have plenty of grazing fields in the immediate forest. I received the message that day with excitement, shouted with joy, and made everyone know that the great news was finally in. I could not wait any longer but withdrew on the second day to buy some materials that were still needed to complete the construction.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life after receiving the first transfer is the huge investment in livestock. The 8 goats I added to the pre-existing 11 mean a lot, not only to me but also to my entire family. This will ease school fees payment, and meet other financial obligations in the future.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
The joy of receiving the first transfer rejuvenated the strength to work extra harder on the projects that were still pending and even initiate the new ones that we had been having in mind as a household. Upon the withdrawal of the full amount, I spent KES32000 on obtaining 8 goats each going for KES4000. This is a huge project that is a continuation since I already had 11 goats on my field. Such an opportunity to expand could not pass without putting money on it as it has proven over time to cost less in management and its productivity doubles up within a short period. I also bought some construction materials to complete the floors and window of my new house, settled school fees for my two kids, - one in grade one and the other one in grade two - added some maize to our food stores, and saved the remaining amount to serve other contingencies.
Enrolled
access_time 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I am passionate about dairy farming. I have always wanted to build a food store for my dairy cows. Most of the time the animal feels goes to waste because of poor storage, also the sugarcane feeds and nappier grass overgrow since I cannot harvest when it is due because of lack of storage facility. It is against this backdrop that I want to construct one.If I had a store I would harvest in good time and allow fresh nappier and sugarcane to grow. I intend to build a store worth KES 40000 and use the rest of the money to buy indigenous goats to graze in the nearby forest.
What is the happiest part of your day?
I had planted beans and it rained sufficiently and so the beans did well. I harvested 4 bags on the 0.8-acre farm. I sold them at KES 48000 which I used to buy a chaff cutter that I am using at the moment. I felt that I achieved a lot. It is not an easy thing to harvest that much.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Since the outbreak of the lethal maize necrosis disease, maize has been a thing of the past. We have no option but to purchase and up until now, we are purchasing the commodity unlike in the past. This has affected our disposable income a great deal and we are now left to depend on livestock keeping. Since I now depend fully on livestock I have had to the challenge of storage of feeds as I had mentioned to you.
