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.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
We were just relaxing at home when I got a message notification from my phone. My spouse and children were present too. When I checked the message I could not hide my joy. It was a message confirming that I have received money from GiveDirectly. My spouse and children felt so happy because that was the highest amount of money we have ever received. We planned on how to spend the transfer and we went to withdraw the money after four days. We are so grateful for the support because GiveDirectly has improved our living standards.
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 have purchased a heifer. This is because I always buy milk daily and this is costly for me since I do not have a main source of income. We depend majorly on small-scale farming. The small produce that we get is for family consumption. We do not get a surplus to sell so that we can get some income. Sometimes I do casual jobs in the village and this earns me a small income which I use on purchasing household basic needs for the family. When my cow reproduces in the next few months I will be able to get enough milk for the family. I will cut the daily cost of purchasing milk to the cost of KES 50 per day. I have two children. When I do not have money my family would go without milk and this was so demoralizing. I am so grateful for the support because GiveDirecly has fulfilled my dream. I have always wanted to buy a dairy cow but I did not have the money. Currently, I have devoted much of my time to this project.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent KES 28,000 on purchasing a heifer. This was my priority since we always buy milk daily and this is so costly for me. I spent KES 50 per day on milk and this is so much since I do not have a continuous source of income. We depend majorly on small-scale farming and casual jobs in the village. KES 6,000 on furniture. I did not have tables, chairs, and beds in the house. This was the opportunity to buy tables so that whenever there are visitors at home they have a place to sit. The rest of the money I spent on food and household items.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
For too long, my life has not been so good because most of the time I have been treated as a failure and someone who will never achieve anything tangible in life. This was occasioned by my physical disability where it started with my parents despising me and perceiving as a curse in the family because I was born without proper limbs. I have however went against all the odds and bought a land and raised a family through hard work and perseverance. When I failed to go to school it actually made me think on other means of survival which I ended up being a full-time herder and I have since bred 10 cows which have really helped me to progress well in life. These transfers now will earn me more dignity because I plan to use the whole of it to add more cows to my herd which means that am one of the wealthy people in the community.
What is the happiest part of your day?
I got a lot of happiness last month when the local veterinary officer offered to deworm my cows for free. This saved me about KES. 4,000 which I was supposed to get from my pocket.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Weather changes affect farming activities a lot and it is always my worry that my herd of cows might be wiped off if we ever experience a prolonged drought. I have seen that over the recent past there have been a lot of changes in the weather patterns around here which makes prediction fail most of the time. It is therefore so challenging to carry on with farming in such uncertainty.
