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
53150 KES ($467 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?
We are a young family and the money came at a time when I was still in school pursuing my college studies. Most of the money that I got was used to pay school fees and buy basic household needs like food. I am happy that I will be done with my college studies by April this year. My new goal is to start serious poultry keeping project by then. I already deposited KS 8500 for a second hand hatchery and will be able to start once I get home. The project is meant to help me pay school fees for my daughter who is joining school soon. It will also help me ease the cost of living and have a more decent life.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion GiveDirectly scores very highly by en gaa Gung with the beneficiaries directly making it possible for them to receive. The full amount of support they offer. Compared tu other forms of aids like bursaries that we sometime go through several people and end up being fleeced sometimes is something to loud GiveDirectly for. On the other hand, GiveDirectly officers should be careful not to exclude anyone in the program in as much as they follow rules in enrolling people into the program.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I used KES 40000 to pay my own college fees and meet o the r expenses like renting charges and food in school. I sent KES 8000 to my wife back at home to buy basic household needs and take the family through as I concentrated on my studies. The money came at a time that I had defere from school due to lack of school fees and I thought they wee God sent purposely to help me clear my studies that had taken me quite long to complete. I am happy that I am now on my last semester and I can't wait to clear and one back home to better the living standards of my family as a whole.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($486 USD)
access_time almost 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around 11:34pm when I received the GiveDirectly transfers. I and my family were very excited and we could hardly sleep for the the better part of that night.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is all round happiness.This is because the transfers enabled me buy a heifer which will act as a long-term income source.I also bought incubator which will be a source of daily income for my family because it will hasten hatching of chicks within a short period.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent a better part of the money on a friesian heifer because it will give birth and grow fast. I also bought a chicken incubator with an intention of laying more chicks within a short time and this will be an additional source of income.
Enrolled
access_time 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
We have been struggling to make ends meet and therefore, receiving this money means financial stability in my family. We are subsistence farmers yet farming is unreliable in our region due to maize necrosis disease which has been with us for the past 10 years. We have decided to spend our first transfer to relocate to a new place within the village and the remaining cash start a business. The choice of relocating to a new place is triggered by proximity to the road and we want to tap an opportunity. This will give us a platform to start and run a business of hatching chicks and selling them. We are therefore planning to spend our first transfer to relocate our house and to buy an incubator and start a journey of fulfilling our dreams. Give Directly's entry into their village is a sigh of relief to us.
What is the happiest part of your day?
In the past 5 months, we were able to harvest approximately 3 bags of maize in our 0.2 acres of land. Harvesting that amount yet we are struggling with maize necrosis disease is something to smile about. I don't remember the last time we harvested that much because the disease has been with us for the past 10 years. This has brought happiness to our family because we have enough maize which can sustain us throughout the year.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
We live in a house built by my dad in the year 2007 which is a small iron-roofed, mud house. The house acts as a kitchen and at the same time as a sleeping area. Whenever I invite my friends or when we receive visitors, they scoff at it because we have partitioned it using an old bed-sheet. The house was built using old materials and now it is a shanty yet we cannot build a better one. This has lowered my self-esteem, something that I am currently struggling with.
