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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14th 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?
The difference in my life in the last four months in that I have never missed any meal in the last four months. This was a big change in my life in that we would miss so many meals in my family due to the low income from casual work. I would forgo other meals so as to meet other family needs. In the last four months, I have always bought food in bulk which has really helped in budgeting in the house. My children are healthy and we have peace as a result of having food daily.
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 of starting foodstuff business. This is because after the transfers are gone, I would still want to have a stable source of income. I would also not want to go back to where I was before the transfers.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
Before the transfers, I did not have any good household items. I used to have the old ones I had when I got married three years ago. In most cases, whenever I had visitors, I would have to beg from my neighbors so as to cover my poverty. This was embarrassing because my neighbors knew my weakness and they would occasionally use it against me when we are having conflicts in the village. With GD transfers, I used to pay a friend on a monthly basis to make for me a sofa set and a table. Right now, I don't have to beg anymore for seats because I have my own.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I expect my life to change in the next six months in that I would have started the foodstuff business. I would want to save part of my transfers so as to aid in buying stock for the business. I would not want to go back to casual work as before.
12th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($22 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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How is your life currently different from how it was four months ago?
In the last four months, I was able to buy cement which I used in plastering my house. I used part of my transfers to buy cement and sand which I used in plastering my house. This has been my dream since I got married but because I did not have any income, I was not able to plaster the house. Now that I have an income from GD, I have been able to plaster my house I had desired.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
In the next four months, I wish to start a foodstuff business. Currently, I do not have any source of income and that is why I prefer to start a business to help me raise income to support my family.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my daily life since I started receiving these transfers is that I have new household items such as mattress, utensils and a sofa set. Before the transfer, I did not have enough utensils for my daily life usage. Since I do not have any source of income, my family have always been dependant on my husband's income. His income is not enough to meet all our daily needs hence we could not spare some to buy new household items. With these transfers, I have been able to buy household items bit by bit and am glad I have new items in the house.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
In the next six months, I want to buy a sheep. I have always desired to have at least one type of livestock in my compound. This is an investment which I know will help me to raise good money to handle my needs.
8th 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?
We saved these transfers and purchased materials that we used to plaster our floor. Our house was always very dusty before and this caused health problem for my family especially my child who is a toddler and spends most of his time crawling on the floor. Am happy that in the last few months, I have not visited the hospital or reported any case of respiratory problems.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
My husband and I have agreed to combine our next transfers to raise capital for me to start a small business to enable me have my own income and stop idling at home.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
Four months ago, we had a plan to plaster our house which was made of mud and was very dusty. This forced us to economize on everything including the basic requirements and food stuff which meant that we could not have three square meals a day. It was a very tough time for my family because it was the only way we could achieve our dream. It had to be this way because my husband did not have a steady job while I am a stay home mum. The transfers helped us complete the process really fast and we are now back to better days, we can now feed better and buy the necessities without any worry.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I expect that in the next six months, I will have set up my own business so that I can assist my husband in providing for our family. Having more income also means that we will be able to achieve our goal of plastering the entire house.
4th Payment
Transfer Amount
4560 KES ($45 USD)
access_time 6 years ago
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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 managed to buy seats which I could not afford before.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I expect my life to change in the next six months in that I will have started my own business hence getting income which I can easily use to take care of my needs.
How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My life is currently different from how it would have been if I never received the transfer in that my house looks decent because of the seats that I bought using the transfer.
Do you have any new goals that you didn't have before receiving the transfer?
My new goal is to cement the walls and flour of my house so as to look decent.
Enrolled
access_time over 6 years ago
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship that I have is lack of household items of my own since the ones that I have are for my brother in law who can come for them at any time.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is in the afternoon after finishing my household chores and relaxing while making stories with my husband.
What are you planning to spend your transfer on?
I am planning to spend my transfer to start a business.
What is the achievement you are proudest of?
The achievement I am proudest of is that I managed to accomplish my education despite the fact that I come from a family that never went to school.