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?
In the next four months, I have a new goal to construct a small business shop where I will then obtain the necessary equipment in aid of the hairdressing business I have been doing. I am expecting a contribution from the Merry-go-round which I have been funding and this will be a boost in my new investment. All along I have been moving fro house o house in search of clients since I had no shop but with this plan, I will soon be stationed in a specific place where I will make it known to y customers.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
Upon receiving the transfers from GiveDirectly, I have seen quite a lot of difference in my daily life. I have been trying my best to ensure that I put in place all I needed though it is sometimes hard to make it happen. The biggest difference in my daily life in the past four months is the presence of a heifer which I bought two months ago. Currently, I am expecting it to calf down in the next three months and that to us will really mean a lot. It will be the end of buying milk and it is also an added source of income since we will be selling the surplus milk.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
In the next six months, I expect my yet-to-start business to be running. I will have stopped working on casual labor since all my concentration will be in my business. I am grateful for the support we have been receiving fro GiveDirectly and with the remaining transfers, I am hopeful that I will be able to accomplish a lot.
24th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($23 USD)
access_time over 4 years ago
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Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
My additional goal in life is to open a salon business in our compound. I am certain that I will get more customers since we do not have any in my village. I will be running the business and I am optimistic of good returns since I will not be spending on house rent. The profits from this business will allow me to be paying school fees for my children on time.
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 is that I have been able to start saving some money in a merry go round group that I joined recently. I will use these savings to start a salon business in my area. I settled on this since hairdressing has always been my hobby and I will also run a monopoly business in our area. Doing some casual work would not have enabled me to save the much that I have saved now. Also, my children now dress decently and are no longer being laughed at by other children in our village. Due to this, their self-esteem has improved and I am also proud to be a parent as I now feel fulfilled. I thank GiveDirectly for making all this possible.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I believe that my life will have changed in the next six months in that I will have opened a salon business. By this time, I will be working towards expanding it so that the profits I will be making will increase. As a way of expanding this business, I am intending to be selling beauty products within the premises. This will enable me to have a variety of customers and also maintain them. I will be using the profits I will incur from this business to achieve all this.
19th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($22 USD)
access_time 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 in that my son is no longer being sent back home from school. I enrolled him in a private school so that he can get a quality education. Had it not have been for my transfer, all this would not have been possible. Apart from my children not being sent back home to collect school fees, they also dress decently and are no longer the talk of the village.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
I am a single mother of three children and I still live with my parents. My children and I have been sleeping in our kitchen. This has always made my children sleep late as they have to wait until everyone has taken their dinner. Since my father has given me a piece of land where I can build my self a house, my main aim now is to build a house where I can sleep in with my children comfortably. Also, I am planning to join a beauty college so that I can study a course in hairdressing. This will help me to be self-employed by opening my salon. I will use the savings from my table banking group to achieve this.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my life is that I am now a proud owner of a heifer. When it reproduces, I will sell the milk and use the money to cater for my children's educations. I will also be selling some of my heifers in case of a financial crisis. It had always been my prayer to own one but I had not achieved this due to lack of money.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
In the next six months, my life will have changed from how it is now. I will have built myself a house and my children and I will be sleeping comfortably without any disturbances. Also, I will have joined college to pursue my dream of gaining skills in beauty and hairdressing. When I finish studying, I will open a salon which I will be operating. This will enable me to be self-independent even when GiveDirectly will have stopped giving us the financial help after the years they promised us.
16th 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 in the last four months was really hard compared to the life I am living at the moment. I used to depend on casual labor which I would do from morning to evening. This was the only source of income I had which would enable me to buy food for the household and also facilitated the improvement of my farming on my farms. When we started receiving the transfers, things changed and nowadays I rarely go for casual jobs but I have concentrated more on my farm. I have gotten enough money to buy seeds and even to till my piece of land. That to me is the difference which I have registered in my life in the last four months.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
Having been a member of a table banking group which we started in the village, I have been working hard to ensure that I save through it with the hope of investing on the same money in future. I have a new goal at the moment to ensure that I purchase another heifer to make two with the one I had already bought. This again is a saving plan towards my firstborn child who is currently in class six. I am also hoping that if all goes well I will save towards purchasing of a piece of land in the future. This is a long term goal which I am hoping to realize but first I will have to start a shop business to boost my saving scheme. All thanks go to GiveDirectly for bringing this project to our village.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
Having three kids who are fast growing really demands a lot now and in the future from me as a parent. Although they are in primary school I am already getting a signal that I should get prepared to pay their huge school fees when they get to secondary school. This thought has sent me putting plans in order so that I will not be caught when the time comes. All these plans have been heightened and made possible by the transfers I am receiving from GiveDirectly. I have made many changes in my daily life using the transfers and the biggest difference is the presence of a heifer which I bought after receiving my turn from a table banking group we started. I have a plan to keep that heifer both for the production of milk in the future and also calves which I will then opt to sell in case of any difficulty in settling my children's school fees.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
Since I have many projects running at the moment, my only hope is to see their completion with time. The main one I have is the plan to purchase a heifer which to me will come to pass in the next six months. I am praying God that all plans I have put in place towards it will not fail and at that, I will be in a position to be owning two cows at the end of the 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 different in that my dignity has been retrieved. People tend to look down upon you when you have nothing of your own. I have struggled to have my own assets albeit with some difficulty but I am really proud of who I am now. I used to borrow food at my neighbors place and at times we could sleep hungry after failing to get such
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
In the next four months, I want to work towards actualizing my dream of completing my merry go round contributions. This is what keeps me going. This time round, I am aiming at buying my own land. As we speak, I stay at home with my parents and this makes me feel more of an irresponsible parent. I want to buy land, build a home for my children and have a sense of pride as a responsible mother.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my life in the last four months is that I can now have a plan about my life's endeavors. Before GiveDirectly came, It was very unusual for me to get money amounting to more than a thousand in my phone. With the transfers, I have been able to acquire my own assets and give my children a better education with an aim of securing their future.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
In the next six months, I expect to have fully settled my family in a new home constructed in a new land. I expect to start a small business that will help me raise more income for my family.
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 is currently different because when my child closes school, I no longer have outstanding fee balances. Since I go assistance from GD, I always do prompt payment and this has seen my child stay in school without being interrupted.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
In the next four months I expect to have bought a cow which will be supplying milk for my family use and at the same have excess for sell hence generating more income.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
My daily biggest difference in the last four months is that while I work on casual basis and feed for my family, I still have enough to save and use for other projects. Previously, I had no otherwise because all my pay would go to family expenses but now I am happy because I save some amount.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
In the next six months I expect to be owning a cow with which will assist me earn some income. I also expect to own some land because I am sure with hard work and determination all is possible.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
455 KES ($4 USD)
access_time over 6 years ago
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Do you have any new goals that you didn't have before receiving the transfer?
I have seen fit to plan and open a salon and improve on the little business because i have been helping my customers at home. I want to find a space and run my business from there.
How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My life is now different from before because i no longer allow my child who studies in a boarding school to be sent home for school fees. The transfers from Givedirectly has really assisted me.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
When i open my salon, i am certain that i will have income of my own and i will no longer depend on casual and manual jobs that i previously used to survive on.
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 no longer fully depend on my parents for everything that i need for me and my kids. I am able to buy small stuff using the transfers without having to bother my parents.
Enrolled
access_time over 6 years ago
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship I have faced in my life is getting separated with my husband which led to hard life living with my four childrens in my parents home.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is at lunch time when am alone at home since children are in school this gives me an humble and refreshed mind.
What are you planning to spend your transfer on?
I am planning to spend my transfer to improve my hairdressing business by opening a salon.
What is the achievement you are proudest of?
The achievement am proudest of is my hairdressing bussiness which could give me an income of five hundred and eighty shillings per day.