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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 > Richard's Profile
Richard's family
Richard
landscapeCountry:
kenya
workOccupation:
Carpentry
faceAge:
50
workCampaign
Standard Kenya
There will be no further updates from this completed recipient.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($531 USD)
access_time 5 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
The difference I got after receiving the transfer is that I managed to pay school fees for my children in secondary school. Earlier on I could not pay their school fee on time which resulted in them being sent home for school fee quite frequently. This would result in them missing lessons and eventually dropping in their performance. I am glad GiveDirectly helped me solve this problem and now my children can stay in school without being sent home for fees until the term ends. Again, I channel some amount to my carpentry workshop which was almost collapsing. I have seen a great change since I bought more timber for making furniture for sale and now I got new tools which help me work efficiently.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, GiveDirectly has really changed the economy of our community by giving us unconditional transfers. The economy of the area has also improved, and not only to those who received funds benefited. Those who had received the money got to hire people to work in their farms and pay them fair wages. on the other hand, motorcycle riders(bodaboda) double the fare and people had no issue adjusting to the new fares as they had money money circulating. What the organization could have done is doing monitoring after they complete sending the money and take note of the great change they brought in our village.
What did you spend your second transfer on?
My second transfer which I received, I spent KES 5000 as deposit payment for a solar and a battery which I acquired on credit for lighting in our home. I also spent part of it to buy chicken for rearing and also to buy maize for consumption since we had none. The remaining amount I spent part of it to buy clothes for my self and my children and the rest KES 13000 to support my carpentry workshop through buying timber and tools.
 
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($537 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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Describe the biggest difference in your daily life.
I am now a happy man as I have started my poultry farming project. I will expand this project as it has always been the desire of my heart. My heart is always filled with happiness whenever I think about how I was able to actualize it and this has so far brought a big change in my daily life as my daily routine has changed since whenever I wake up, I have a task to perform before taking breakfast unlike before and this is always the source of my happiness.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I was around 5.00 am in the morning when I received a message and I decided to check it as I thought that maybe it was someone who needed my help. Upon seeing the content of the message, I could not believe my eyes and I asked my wife to see it and confirm if it was true. After my wife checking my Mp-Pesa balance and confirming that it was true, I was filled with happiness and even after going back to sleep, we could not catch some sleep. We then decided to pray and sing some praise songs at a low tone in order to avoid disturbing our neighbors.
What did you spend your first transfer on?
My children have always been sleeping in my brothers' house despite it being small as I did not want them to go to my neighbors' house for security purposes. When I received my first transfers, I decided to use part of it in building a house for my children so that they could have their own house to sleep in. I have always wanted to start poultry farming but due to lack of funds to start this project, I decided to wait until when I will get money. When GiveDirectly came to my village, they gave me hope of fulfilling my hearts desires. After building a house for my children, I decided to use the remaining amount start this project by buying some chicken and building a chicken pen for them.
 
Enrolled
access_time over 5 years ago
 
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means a brighter future for my children since I am going to spend the transfers on their school fees.On meeting their daily needs I am going to invest on poultry farming.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is in the morning.Waking up healthy is something that I do not take for granted it usually brings joy to me.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship I have faced in my life is being evicted from Mau in 2010.It was a really tough time for my family:we had no place to stay since we had already sold our ancestral land and used the money to buy land in Mau,my kids were young by then and their education was interrupted since we had to stay in a camp for sometime.We were never compensated by the government as promised so i resorted to casual labour, I had to save over 2 years to enable me to buy this 2 acre piece of land.