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
53150 KES ($429 USD)
access_time almost 2 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I would wish for my business to grow and expand to the point where I can provide a better life for my children than their father and i have had. I would also like to add some livestock on my property. a few cows, goats, and possibly some poultry. I strongly believe that all this will come to pass with time.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
I applaud GiveDirectly for what they have done for me and my family. Without them, my business would not be where it is today , and i would not have been able to cover my husbands medical bills . I have nothing but praise for GiveDirectly
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
My main line of business is primarily selling clothes. I sew and sell both male and female clothes. The variety in styles is endless, ranging from trousers to t-shirts to deras and vitenges, all of which I make and sell in Kilifi. I rent out a shop for $50 per month. The transfers from GiveDirectly enabled me to expand my business by purchasing more clothes as well as pay the aforementioned shop rent. The shop also serves as our residence. My husband and my one-week-old baby share a bed with me. At the moment, my husband is unemployed. He used to be a track driver but fell ill in August 2022 and is still recovering. The funds from GiveDirectly were partly funneled towards his medical expenses incurred during his month-long stay. In addition to this, I made sure to spend some of it on food for our upkeep. It's fair to say that GiveDirectly provided us with much needed relief from our financial hardships we had been in.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($459 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
The moment I received my first transfer from GiveDirectly, I felt so happy as I knew that I will be able to fulfill my dream of starting up a tailoring business. I am a tailor by profession but since I had no money to buy my machine, I was forced to stay home as a housewife. At times, I would go hire a sewing machine and sew a few clothes and sell it to earn some money though it wasn't easy to get one to use more often.
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 self-employed. Before, I couldn't make money regularly like it is at the moment. At the moment, I earn a profit of up to KES 300 a day and that's enough for me to cater to my family's needs. I no longer have to depend on my spouse who is a driver and get paid after a month. His pay now can help us to do investments for the family and also pay school fees for our children.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
When I got the money, my biggest goal was to start up a tailoring business so that I can have a job where I can enjoy the profits. For a long time, I had no job though I had skills and my priority was to acquire a sewing machine that I needed for business. I spent KES 12000 to acquire a sewing machine which I would use to make clothes for sale. I spent KES 5000 on paying rent for business premises. A huge amount of KES 36500, I spent on buying materials for making clothes. The remaining amount of KES 1500, I spent on buying foodstuffs for my family.
Enrolled
access_time almost 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I am a tailor by profession and bought a second hand sewing machine for my daily use. I have potential customers but my sewing machine is not working well and I don't have materials to make clothes.I can make school uniforms here but I dont have capital to buy the materials.
Receiving this money means i will expand my tailoring business. I will build a small tailoring shop, buy materials of KES 30, 000 and start making school uniforms both for the 2 nearby primary and the secondary. I will make money and my business will boom because there is no one in my area who has a tailoring shop.
What is the happiest part of your day?
This last year's Christmas brought joy and happiness to my life. My husband slaughtered a goat and brought home a sack of rice(25kg).
It brought joy and happiness because I had spent 2 years without eating goat meat with rice.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Finance is the biggest challenge.I am married to a polygamy family and there is no food in my house. The salary of my husband cannot sustain all the needs of these 2 wives. I am dreaming of expanding my tailoring shop but its not possible because all the money we get from our husband goes direct to buy food and medical for the children.
