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
55000 KES ($502 USD)
access_time over 3 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I am grateful to GiveDirectly because I am now sheltering in a decent and spacious iron roofed house. My previous house was very small and in a bad state. I could not renovate it on time due to lack of financial resources. I moved in to my new house and this gives me peace having a nice house to live. Apart from this, I also managed to pay for a motorcycle that I had acquired on loan. It would have taken me months to reduce this loan to a manageable amount. I am glad that I can comfortably clear the remaining amount soon through the daily proceeds from taxi services that I provide. Lastly, I am also owning goats which are my precious assets. They will reproduce and increase in number. I can rely on them as a source of money because I can readily sell the offsprings in case of a financial need.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
Our lives have changed within a short period of time ever since GiveDirectly came to us. We were in abject poverty, living in shanty grass thatched houses and owning livestock or any investment seemed impossible to us. Through the GiveDirectly's poverty alleviation policy and the unconditional transfers, our lives are not the same again. We are now owning livestock which are valuable assets to us, we have been able to build decent houses and our children are comfortably in school. To me, uplifting our living standards in my opinion is what GiveDirectly does well. I do not see anything that GiveDirectly does not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I had acquired a motorcycle on a loan and I was unable to complete the payment on time. When I received my second transfer, I paid KES 30000 to reduce the outstanding loan amount. At least I am now remaining with a manageable amount that I can comfortably clear through the daily proceeds from the motorcycle. This motorcycle has been my only source of income so far as it provides taxi services. In addition to this, I also spent KES 22000 of the remaining portion of the transfer on buying five goats which I am currently keeping in my homestead. These are assets to me which I can rely on in case of a financial need. I am expecting them to reproduce and increase in number. As they increase number, I will sell the offsprings to raise some money and buy a cow.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($499 USD)
access_time almost 4 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around 8 o'clock in the morning when I was preparing breakfast when my phone started ringing loudly. Without wasting time I decided to check who it could be. Upon checking, I confirmed that it was an Mpesa message from GiveDirectly. I felt so happy for the financial support because I had almost lost hope in life and I definitely knew that my life would transform positively.
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 am now hopeful and happier because the financial support empowered me to purchase goats. These have been the well thoughtful living assets that I had aspired to rear for quite a long time but I could not afford them because they were very costly. Therefore on receiving the transfers, my first priority was to buy them. I opted to keep them because if you compare them with the other domestic animals, they reproduce twice a year, and the offspring mature very fast. This makes me believe they will increase in number within a short period of time making me wealthier. In the near future when they multiply, I will be selling the matured offspring to the local markets and save the money for my children's education. Also, I will be using the same money in meeting my family's needs ie daily food, and many more.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent part of my first transfer on buying some livestock such as six goats worthy of KES 22000. I have been longing to keep them for a long but I could not afford them because they were too expensicv3e. I also bought some building materials such as iron sheets, several building poles, timber, threads, and timber. This is purposely for the construction of a new house for my children since the previous one that we were sheltering on was very small and it could not accommodate us all. With the remaining amount of money, I bought foodstuffs for my family and some other household items.
Enrolled
access_time 4 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
A separate house for my girls is basically what receiving this money means to me. This is because, my girls are now grown up and due to lack of money, I have failed to construct a separate house for them something that has ruined my joy for a long time. My plan once I receive this money is to spend a big portion of my first transfer ($350), to construct the house. On the other hand, I also plan to start livestock rearing that will include; 2 indigenous dairy cows plus 5 goats for $300 and $200 respectively. This will have opened a new chapter of my livelihood and hence, a better life.
What is the happiest part of your day?
I usually spend my morning hours doing the charcoal work because it is at this time when I am energetic enough. For the afternoon hours, I am ever exhausted and it is at this time when I come home to take my first meal for the day. In the evening when I have taken my dinner, I usually find myself so happy because I get relaxed something that re-energizes me more for the next day's work. Hence the evening becomes the happiest part of my day.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The lack of a reliable source of income to cater to my family's basic needs especially food and shelter is the biggest hardship that I have ever faced. It has been 2 months now since my husband was jailed due to the accidental cause of fire to a communal land when he was doing his charcoal work. Since then, I assumed his role as the breadwinner for the family and this means doing all the odd jobs like charcoal burning in order get money for food for my children and this has never been easy for me.
