GDLive Newsfeed
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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Enrollment
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Transfers
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Completed
Newsfeed > Regina's Profile
Regina's family
Regina
landscapeCountry:
kenya
workOccupation:
Small business
faceAge:
42
workCampaign
Kenya Large Transfer
There will be no further updates from this completed recipient.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($493 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My life is different than how it would have been if I never received the transfers in that I was able to pay school fees for my children. This was my main priority, I so small scale farming and the harvest that we get is only for consumption, I support this by doing the casual jobs to get the school fees for my children. I do not have continues source of income. My children could be sent home to collect the school fees and this was affecting their performance since lessons were on going. When I received the second transfer I paid all the school fees on time. My children improved in their performance compared to the previous terms since the had enough time to study well without being disturbed. I am so happy because GiveDirectly has enabled us to live a better life than before.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion GiveDirectly does well by giving money to the poor in the community to build better houses and to buy dairy cows and pay school fees for their children. I do not find anything that GiveDirectly did not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spend part of the money I received from GiveDirectly on buying a Heifer. This will enable me to cut the daily cost of buying milk when it reproduced. I also paid school fees for my children in various schools and this enabled them to improve their performance since they had enough time to study well without being sent home. The rest of the money I build a better house for my family. I am so happy because GiveDirectly has changed our living standard to be much better.
 
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($500 USD)
access_time 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I was at home having lunch with my family when I got the message on my phone indicating that we had received the lump-sum amount of 55000/= from GiveDirectly. I was filled with so much happiness that I could not keep the joy to myself. I told my family the good news and even showed them the SMS. They were so happy to hear this and we celebrated to the extent that we forgot that we were having lunch. The children were excited and they started making requests for new clothes and shoes. I could not say no to them and I hence promised them whatever they needed. They became so happy on hearing this and they jumped up with joy.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The transfer has brought a big difference in my life and that of my family. We were able to clear the big school fees arrears that we had and hence we no longer have stress about where to get the money to do so. Our children will be able to study well without the fear that they will be sent home due to arrears. The calf that we bought will help us in the future. We will take care of it and when it matures enough, we will sell it at a higher price and use the money on important things such as paying school fees for the children. Having invested some money in the shop business, we will be able to get more income that will help us in buying food and other necessities. The children are also happy after we bought them new clothes with part of the transfer.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
The transfer from GiveDirectly helped us in a big way that we had never imagined. We first gave out church tithes and with the remaining amount, we used it in other activities and developments that we had planned. We first decided to clear the school fees arrears that we had at school. Clearing the arrears had become a challenge for us to do because we owed the school a lot of money. After getting done with that, we decided to invest some of the money in the shop business that we have. We decided to do so that we can get more income in return that will hence help us with other things such as buying food. We also bought a calf with part of the transfer. Buying this calf is a way of securing money. We will take care of it and when it matures enough, we will sell it and use the money on important things such as paying school fees for our children. There was still a little bit of money left, and we decided to use it by buying a few clothes for our children. We were not in a position to do the above things before especially to clear the school fees arrears because we did not have the money to do so. My husband has a small business of buying and selling goats and as for me, I usually operate the shop business. The money that we get from the two businesses has mostly been going to the payment of school fees and buying food. We hence thank GiveDirectly because they came through for us at the time we needed money the most.
 
Enrolled
access_time over 3 years ago
 
What does receiving this money mean to you?
We have been aspiring of building another house because the one we have now is not spacious to accommodate a family of eight. Also, there is no privacy for my grown-up children whenever they need to change clothes. We spent all our savings to purchase a 2.5-acre piece of land. In case we receive this transfer it will assist us to fulfill our desire by purchasing the building materials. We will be happy parents because now our children will get atleast a room to use in the study without any distractions.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Usually, after thanking God for enabling me to see the new day, at around mid-morning, after completing my household chores. I leave now to my farm to weed my vegetables and sometimes ploughing in preparation for the next planting seasons. The evening is now my happiest part of the day since that is the time I am relaxing.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship we have faced is the lack of school fees for our children. We have two who are at the secondary level and four others at the primary level. Our source of income is the profit my husband gets from trading sheep and goats, monthly he can get around 5,000 shillings as profit. This is supposed now to cater for school fees whereby annually around 30,000 shillings is required plus other schools necessities. Since it has not been enough our children are at home due to arrears.