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.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I was busy feeding my livestock when one of my neighbors informed me happily that they had received the promised funds from GiveDirectly at night. At that moment, I decided to call them and inquire when I would receive mine. It was at this time when I realized that I had an unread message and upon reading it, my heart was filled with joy on confirming that I was among those who had received it. I informed my family about the good news and they were equally happy, we sat down as a family and planned how we would spend it before cashing it out.
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 can always go on with other activities without worrying about my livestock destroying our crops. This has been possible since I was able to fence my farm using part of the transfers. I depend on both crop and livestock farming for survival and this has enabled me to educate my five children, four are already done with their tertiary education while one is still in secondary school level. Fencing this land was a priority to me since it will enable me to fully concentrate on the two projects and maximize my profits.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
Upon receiving my transfer, I spent KES 7000 on the purchase of barbed wire and nails to use in fencing my farm since I already had some poles and I decided to do the labor myself to reduce expenditure. We settled on this so that our livestock will not be destroying our farm crops when we are not around. In addition, I spent KES 21000 on the purchase of a heifer as a way of investing this money. This heifer will enable me to enjoy the good deeds of GiveDirectly for a very long time through the sale of surplus. I spent the remaining KES 16000 on food, clothes, and utensils after saving KES 10000 that I am planning to use collectively with my second transfer.
Enrolled
access_time almost 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Acquiring a dairy cow is one of my dreams. This is a dairy milk production area, with a very big milk cooling plant. From the ones I already have, I get about 5 litres per day. If I get another one at about KES 40,000, my production will go up 10 liters, translating to an additional income of KES 6000 per month. I will be spending this amount on my children's school fees. I will use then spend another KES 20,000 on fencing and paddocking my farm . Finally , I will spend the remaining amount on improving my home and buying foodstuffs.
What is the happiest part of your day?
In the past 6 months, I am happy that we have never had anyone in my family falling sick. We have been healthy all through despite the spike in COVID-19 cases near home. The common issues such as colds or anything else has not occurred in my household, for which I am grateful.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest challenge that I currently face is lack of school fees for my children. I earn approximately KES 5,000 per month from all my farming efforts. With this, I have to meet my household needs as well as school fees and upkeep money for my children. J struggle a lot to pay rent and upkeep money fpr my daughter in college. with this little income, it is difficult to keep them well at school without interruptions.
