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.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
My next goal is to save part of my next transfers with the intention of buying a water tank. This will really save us from the hassle of carrying heavy jerrycans of water through very long distances. The water tank would enable us to harvest and store rainwater. I can't wait to rest my back from this tiresome exercise
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
In August I spent all my transfers which I had received that month to buy onion seeds. I recently harvested the crop and was lucky to get KES 28700. I knew this venture would be fruitful because no one in our village planted them hence no competition. In addition to that, I also spent KES 15000 to buy a hybrid heifer. I wanted to invest in livestock so that I would have something to remember about the money which I received from Give Directly. I finally used the remaining amount to pay school fees for my children
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
In the next six months, I will have bought a water tank hence no more water scarcity through the year. I also subdivided my peace of land into small paddocks. This will help me to efficiently graze animals. I will not be spending much of my time taking care of the cattle but rather have an enclosed area where they will graze. These two ventures will leave me with ample time to do other constructive work
16th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($22 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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How is your life currently different from how it was four months ago?
My life is currently different from how it was four months ago since my children are no longer being sent back home because of school fees balance. This is because I have been able to clear this year's school fees using the savings I was given in our merry go round group. Due to this, I am hopeful and optimistic that their performance will improve since their studies will no longer be interrupted by being sent home regularly.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
The additional goal for the next four months is to plant some onions for sale. I settled on this project since it takes only three months to be ready for harvesting. It will also help me make use of my land which is currently lying idle.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer is that I am now a happy parent as I have been able to clear my children's outstanding school fees balance. This has given me time to relax and concentrate on other projects like looking for feeds for my livestock unlike before when I would focus more on casual work.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I expect my life to have changed in the next six months since I will have planted onions in my farm. I am hopeful that I will have harvested and sold them. The money I get I will save so that I can use it to pay school fees for my son who is joining secondary school next year.
12th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($23 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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How is your life currently different from how it was four months ago?
My life is currently different in that I now afford some of the most basic needs without having to worry of where I can get casual jobs to earn something for buying food for the family. Life was difficult for us four months a go when I could get out in the morning promising my wife to get back home in the evening with food for the family. There were times you had to believe that the day was going to go well even when you knew it was going to be a bad day for you. These days, we can be sure of having food today, tomorrow and the days to come thanks to the improved farming practices that has been brought about by GiveDirectly transfers.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
We have a newly constructed family house that is about to be completed. In the next four months, my plan is to save more from the monthly income from GiveDirectly and other sources of income within my reach. This will assist us have enough money to buy iron sheets for roofing at the end of the four months. I am very likely to accomplish this considering that we now have quite enough food from the family that came about as a result of improved farming practices in our farm. Money meant to buy food will go a long way in making us realize this dream of having a new house.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
In the last four months, life has been so good to us as a family. I now do less of casual work and still afford to do more than I could for my family. I could spend several hours working as a casual labourer just to get enough money to feed my family while in most times it could never be enough for us. This often left me stressed up and tired as well. There are days that I could get totally worn out since the nature of work that I did was largely manual. Getting GiveDirectly transfers brought relief to me since I could get time off my hard casual jobs to at least have a good time with my family without the worry of sleeping hungry in the days to come. I am now an active participant in the monthly merry go rounds that was initiated in the village and which has greatly helped me meet most of my family's needs.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
In the next six months, I expect to have fully completed my house construction and bought furniture and other valuables for my family. I expect to be leading a family that is more happy than it is right now and this will definitely make me a more proud father.
5th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($23 USD)
access_time over 6 years ago
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How is your life currently different from how it was four months ago?
My life currently is different since I do not go looking for some casual work to do daily and I have also bought a sofa set.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
The new goal I now have is to buy a water tank so that I can be using it to store water during rainy season.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my daily life is happiness.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I expect my life to change in that I will have bought a water tank and a sheep.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($22 USD)
access_time over 6 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I don not see much difference right now since we are still planning on how we will utilize it.
Do you have any new goals that you didn't have before receiving the transfer?
I want to buy a bigger water tank because we sometimes have scarcity of water especially where there is no rain.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
My life will change in the near future because i know that i will have a water tank, i will be more comfortable since i will be accessing water at my doorstep.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
It has eased my way of looking for daily food since that load has been reduced by the transfers. I used to work too hard initially but it is much easier now.
Enrolled
access_time almost 7 years ago
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship I have faced in my life is going without food some days and lack of cash to buy food.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is in the evening when I can seat and relax because I can discuss each and every person's of my family achievements of the day.
What are you planning to spend your transfer on?
I'm planning to spend my transfer on paying school fees and complete building my new house.
What is the achievement you are proudest of?
The achievement am proudest of is my children who have been greatest blessings to me and have made me so happy.