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 was awakened by the loud vibration from my mobile phone. I definitely knew it was a new message. Because I am illiterate, I decided to ask my son to check the content of the message. After checking, he realized it was an Mpesa message from GiveDirectly. I was so happy knowing my dreams of owning a decent house are now achievable.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
Before the coming of GiveDirectly in my life, I was sleeping in a small muddy hut with some grass-thatched roofing. I did not have money to buy the required materials to upgrade it. Therefore whenever it could rain I never had peace because I had to seek shelter from my neighbors together with my family and at times I felt like I had become a burden to them. I am now so happy because I managed to construct a new decent spacious house that can accommodate all my family members. I no longer worry about the rains I used to, and I feel this has brought the biggest difference in my daily life.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent part of my first transfer on buying some building materials such as iron sheets, building poles, nails, timber, and threads. This was purposely for the construction of a new house, my previous one was a small hut with some grass-thatched roofing. During the winter season, it was always being rained on and I had to seek shelter from the neighbors. I then paid the Masson as his labor charge KES 6000. The remaining amount of money I am using it buying enough foodstuffs for my family and some other basic household items that I was lacking.
Enrolled
access_time over 4 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Our family got evicted from our communal land over 10 years ago and that is the last time I remember owning a house. Since then I have not been able to build a another and our life has been a living hell. We live in a structure that is not even fit for chicken and it keeps on collapsing every now and then. I use a tree next to my structure as a store for my belongings. My children sleep in their grandmother's house while my husband and I sleep in the cold every night. This transfer has come to save me this pain because I will achieve my dream of owning a house once again.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is in the morning when I wake up to see a new day. I believe that God is the giver of life and despite all my problems he is always there for my family.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Financial constraint is my biggest hardship because I do not have a stable source of income. My husband works as a watchman but he can go for two months without a job because he has to shift with his colleague. This means I have to go an extra mile of taking casual job especially burning charcoal. Due to this situation it is very tough to provide for our seven children and lack of enough needs is the lifestyle.
