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 ($493 USD)
access_time almost 3 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My life is different than it would have been if I never received the transfers in that I have bought land and build a better and spacious house. This house has three room. I will be living in one room with my children and the rest will be for business. I am planning to start a tailoring work and a small restaurant where I will be serving the fast food. This will be my daily source of income. I live with my parents together with my children. This is challenging in that I am not free to do my own things privately. When I received the first transfer I bought a piece of land and used the second transfer to developed it. The construction is almost done and I will relocate with my children. I will have peace of mind and be able to plan my life well. I am so happy because GiveDirectly has given me a chance to make things great for my children. I have saved some money to buy a tailoring machine and ready to start work immediately when I relocate. I no longer have stress and anxiety because I will have my own house and business to run. I will no longer so casual jobs like before but rather devote my time to my business.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion GiveDirectly does well by giving money to the poor in the community to build better houses and to buy dairy cows. I do not find anything that GiveDirectly did not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spend part of the money I received from GiveDirectly on building a better and spacious house for my family. I used to live with my parents before. When I received the first transfer I bought my own land and used the second transfer to developed it. The construction is also being complicated and I will relocate with my children. Living with parents when one has children is a bit challenging because there are a lot of things to accomplish.I have saved some money to buy a tailoring machine and also materials to use. I am a tailor and I have been doing this job for quite some time now. I am so happy in that I will have a brand new tailoring machine and stock for a start. This will be my source of income to meet all my household expenditure including paying school fees for my children.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($500 USD)
access_time over 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I was at the farm doing some casual work of weeding maize when I received a call from one of my friends. She told me that people had started receiving the transfers and hence she wanted to know if I had received it too. I told her that I had not and we kept on wondering why have ours delayed when others have received it. We hence resorted to being patient. It was to my surprise that immediately when we ended the call, is when the M-Pesa SMS got into my phone. I was so happy to see it and I rejoiced for a while before I could embark on the work that I was doing. I thanked God and GiveDirectly because I knew my dreams were now going to be fulfilled.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
This transfer has brought a big difference in my life. I have been able to buy the piece of land that I had for a long time desired to have. I plan to construct a house for us with the next transfer that I will get. This way we will be able to move to our new place and I will be able to live peacefully with my children away from the family wrangles. The transfer also enabled me to pay the debt that I owed someone and to buy clothes and shoes for my children. I was also able to buy food that will sustain us for a while. My children are thus happy because they have something to eat and they have new clothes for themselves. Having done all the above with the help from GiveDirectly, I no longer have stress about where I am going to get the money to do so.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
The transfer from GiveDirectly has helped me in a big way. I was able to buy a piece of land, that is, 0.1 acres with part of it. I also paid a small debt that I owed someone and invested some of it in my business of selling chips. The transfer also enabled me to buy some food for my family's consumption and some shoes and clothes for my children. I have always wanted to buy a piece of land for my own because I am currently living at home with my children and at times disagreements arise between me and my brothers. I have hence been desiring to move to another place with my children where we can live peacefully away from the family wrangles. I have not been in a position to do the above, that is to buy land because I do not have a stable source of income. I usually depend on casual jobs and this business of selling chips to get some money. The money has not been enough to do any development and is only enough to buy food and other household necessities.
Enrolled
access_time over 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
My number one desire is to have a place I can call home. I parted ways with my ex-husband and at the moment I am on my own with nowhere to call home. I cannot even go back to my parents' house because my sisters in law are so hostile. I was forced to seek refuge in the neighborhood at least to get the much-needed peace of mind. My two children are going through so much as of now and as a parent, I am at my lowest. If I get lucky to be successfully enrolled, I plan to buy a 0.1-acre piece of land. This will cost me 35000 shillings. I will also build a house in it and this will cost approximately 20000 shillings. Receiving this money will mean a lot to me because I will finally have a place to call home.
What is the happiest part of your day?
I am a potato chips vendor. Every evening I go to my kiosk to prepare some chips and many customers visit me around this time. This is the only time I can afford to have a smile.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
I am a single lady with two children. I got separated from my ex-husband because of irreconcilable differences and he is now married with one child. After separation, I came back home to my parents with the hope of getting some peace of mind but that was never to be. My sisters in law could not give me the peace that I needed because they felt that I should go back to my husband. We could have serious misunderstandings and occasionally quarrel. I thought that I will get some protection from my parents but they too, turned a blind eye to my case. I had no choice but to move out to look for a place I could calm my mind. I was given somewhere to stay temporarily by neighbors who sympathized with my case, and that is where I am up until now.
