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 received the money while I was making breakfast for my family. I understand that the message had arrived earlier but for one reason or another,I had not read it until when I was cooking. I was so happy that I almost forgot all about the food. In fact, some it got overcooked as I was in awe!
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my life is the heifer that I currently own. I used the earliest opportunity with the transfers to buy a cow for future milk production. By the time I received the first transfer, I had sold all the cows on my farm to pay school fees for my children. When the heifer will calve,I will be using the milk I get for household needs so that I stop buying from neighbours.In addition I am hopeful that I will be selling part of the milk to make an income. GiveDirectly has set me off on a better course of life.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent the money I received on buying a heifer. The heifer is approaching calving stage and this makes me very happy. I know that in soon,I will be producing milk for my children and also for sale. I used part of the money on furniture for my home. I then bought a water tank to store rain water inside my house. With the remaining amount,I needed to pay school fees for my girl in a secondary school. Food for the household was the next thing I needed. I finally bought some clothes for my children and myself.
Enrolled
access_time almost 5 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I have been aspiring to add one cow to the one I have. Since we have one cow, it is not enough to cater for the entire family of 5 members. My plan is to use 300 USD of my first transfer buy a dairy cow to supplement the one I have. Therefore, receiving this money mean I will be able to have a healthy family and I will be able to earn more money through the sale of milk.
What is the happiest part of your day?
My day starts early in the morning after my 2 school going children have left for school by going to work (watering, digging, weeding and planting more crops) in my garden (0.2 of an acre) where I planted kales, sugarcane and potatoes. This will take me up to around 1 pm and then use the rest of my afternoon doing other household duties. It is only in the evening I feel happy since it is the only time I am free and relax with the rest of the family as we chat on how the day was.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
For the last 8 years, we have been unable to harvest maize due to change of climate yet we relied on it to sustain the entire family. This has made us to opt for dairy farming and yet we don't have enough land (0.5 of an acre) for rearing (grazing) cattle. The biggest hardship we have faced in life therefore is change of climate in our region which has affected on our crops.
