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.
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2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($457 USD)
access_time over 1 year ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My goal now is to expand my small business of selling goats. I always buy goats from the farmers in the village and sell them at the market at a higher price to get some profits. I used the money on school fees for my children and to meet the daily household needs. I will save some money to expand this shortly.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
GiveDirectly does well in that they give money to the poor in the community to invest in dairy-keeping projects and pay school fees for their children in various schools. Most people have started a business that earns them some income daily. I do not find anything that GiveDirectly did not do well in our village.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spend KES 48,000 on purchasing three heifers. This has always been my wish but I did not have the money to invest. The money that I always get from my small business is so small and it was only for household basic needs and school fees for my children. I buy goats from the farmers at a lower price and sell them at the market at a higher price to get some profits. I will keep the heifers and sell them in the future to pay the school fees for my children when they are in college or university. This has given me hope and peace of mind to invest in this dairy project. My goal now is to save some money from my business to buy more heifers in the future. The rest of the money I spent was on food and household items. I am so happy because GiveDirectly has changed our living standard to be much better than before.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($474 USD)
access_time 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around 9:00 am when I realized that I had received a message from GiveDirectly bearing the good news of the receipt of the first transfer. I was pleased to inform my family as we were all at home at that moment. Everyone received the information with happiness as we already had a list of all that we wished to accomplish. I withdrew the money later that evening when I visited the nearby shopping center.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is the improved standard of living after spending a huge sum of my transfer on livestock. A lot will soon be easier in the future especially in farming since I will no longer be hiring oxen during land preparation. I am grateful to GiveDirectly for this amazing support that has changed a lot in my life.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
After withdrawing the whole amount from the nearby shopping center, I later spent a total of KES 48000 on livestock. I managed to obtain a heifer at KES 17500 and two bullocks one at KES 16500, and the other one worth 14000. This has been a plan to improve my farming through the addition of livestock farming that can improve milk production for my family of seven, and also improve the subsistence farming since the two bullocks will soon be trained to oxen useful in land preparation. I also spent the remaining amount on constructing an extension on our main house to create a room that would accommodate my three children who are still schooling. The current house we had been living in was so small and could not accommodate the whole family. I am glad that we now have enough space that can keep everyone within at night without anyone seeking a place to sleep in the neighborhood.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
My dream is to be a renowned large-scale dairy farmer. Dairy farming is a main economic activity in this area because of the availability of pastures and favorable weather. Engaging in this activity will enable me to accrue adequate funds in-kind form for future use. My concern is the payment of fees for my 4 children who will be joining the secondary school at the same time . Dairy farming will enable me to conquer this foreseeable challenge by use of incomes earned from sale of milk and livestock.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The peace and unity of my family have given me joy in the past 6 months. My wife and I have had a peaceful understanding despite the financial limitations.My lovely wife has supported me in providing for the children and this has made me happy.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Financial constraints is the biggest challenge am currently facing.My wife and I have no permanent jobs.we engage in casual jobs in order to provide for the family .I do jobs such as selling of tobacco within the neighboring markets in order to earn a living.Life is so tough when I fail to get enough tobacco within the community because I end up borrowing from shops in order to eat .Currently I have numerous debts at all corners of the market and this causes me to run around in fear of shame.
