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.
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2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53010 KES ($418 USD)
access_time over 1 year ago
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What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
When I received my transfer, I knew it was the perfect time to prioritize paying my children's school fees. This is because I have four children who are all in school. I am married, and my wife sells household items for a living while I work as a welder. As a result, I spent $200 on school fees and $150 on finishing my house, which had been put off due to school fees responsibilities and other pressing basic needs. Following that, I increased my business by $150 to attract more profit. All of this was previously impossible due to financial constraints. As a result, I am grateful to have achieved a lot in such a short time.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
GiveDirectly's assistance went a long way toward improving our lives; we were informed about the program's purpose and given the option of how to spend our money. The organization's assistance, in my opinion, has been critical in raising the living standards of people in my community. They also instructed us on security precautions. However, I believe they should conduct additional research before concluding that one is ineligible.
How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My ambition for the coming year and beyond is to expand my business and earn more money. This was previously not possible due to financial constraints, as my top priority was paying my children's school fees. To achieve this goal, I plan to save money from my business every day after I finish paying my school fees. My dream will come true, and my future will be brighter, I am confident, with hard work and dedication.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($444 USD)
access_time over 1 year ago
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What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
School fees obligations had prevented me from meeting my goal of constructing a decent home for my family. This forced me to abandon the project and instead focus on paying my children's school fees. I am a shopkeeper, married, and the proud dad of four children. I spent $300 on window panes and a good steel door upon receiving my transfer. Due to financial constraints, this was previously not possible. Secondly, for me to increase my profit margin, I stocked my shop with $200 worth of merchandise. Words cannot express my immense joy and happiness, but I am grateful for the opportunity that has greatly improved my living situation.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The most noticeable difference now is that I have expanded my shop by stocking up on new merchandise. This would make more money than before when the profit was so small. I couldn't do it before due to a lack of funds, and I'm overjoyed that I've finally realized this dream. I am also relieved that I was able to finish building my house. I will be eternally grateful to GiveDirectly for the incredible gift.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
Words cannot express my joy when I saw a text message on my screen indicating that I had received money from GiveDirectly. When I heard my phone buzz, I was at my shop in the shopping centre. I assumed it was normal transaction messages from my customers, but little did I know that I had received a large sum of money from GiveDirectly. I am grateful for the help that came to impact and positively transform our lives.
Enrolled
access_time almost 2 years ago
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Our first born daughter, Diana, recently fell ill and was admitted at Tenwek Hospital under the Intensive care unit for a week. The hospital bill shot up high to USD 550, the National Hospital Insurance Fund was able to pay a paltry USD 170 and we still owe the hospital USD 380. It worries us alot since there still subsequent check ups and we are people of little means. We surrendered our title deed to the hospital to enable us release our daughter after she got better as we look for the outstanding balance.This has lead us to untold stress.We were at the verge of planning a fundraising to defray the bill.We are halfway glad that this help from Give Directly has come to salvage our situation.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Sometimes in March we harvested a 90kg bag of maize yields in our 0.6 acres of land that pushed us for a month. Food insecurity has been an issue in our area since the outbreak of the lethal maize necrosis disease. We had planted the drought and disease resistance variety of maize that are also short term. We were lucky that it did well and relieved us the pain of buying the maize for a month. The cost of living has been biting lately ,a 2kg of maize flour goes at USD 2.30 which is expensive to us. So when we harvested the maize we were filled with joy.
What do you plan to do with the cash transfer?
Receiving this money will bring a paradigm shift in our lives. We are experiencing alot of needs that we have to satisfied. First will be to settle the hospital bill of USD 380 and the rest of the money to finish the construction of our timber walled house that has stalled since April 2020. We are so happy that this money will bring us an elevating effect,we pray that it will also remain after meeting the forgoing commitments so that we can challenge the rest towards school fees for our children who are schooling in the nearby Itembe day secondary school.Life has been hard on our side,each new day presents it's challenge and it has taken a toll on us since we are people of little means.
