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.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
I don't have any new goals at the moment. I am still using transfers to pay for my school fees. I am determined to finish school so that I can be equal with my colleagues whom we were with before I got pregnant. I believe in education and the future is promised once one has gone to school. This is the main reason I decided to invest in my education
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
I used to sleep in my grandmother's house because we were too many yet there were a few bedding. Our main house was too small yet we are almost ten siblings. Apart from that according to Luo culture, someone who has given birth is not allowed to share the same roof with her parents. I have a young daughter whom I had to carry every night as we headed to my grandmother's house. It was never safe to walk with her in the dark but we had to since we didn't have a choice. I thank Give Directly for having changed my life, we pooled our first transfers together and build a kitchen where I now sleep with my child, I no longer have to walk at night while going to my grandmother's place. Since I dropped out of school at form two due after giving birth to my daughter, I had no hopes of going back. I knew my dreams were shattered until Give Directly came. Through their help, I managed to go back to school.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
My goal in the next six months is to ensure that I work hard and attain good grades. I can't fail twice. Therefore I don't have an option but to pass and move to the next level. I feel lucky because Give Directly helped me financially. I now have the means to pay school fees until I finish my secondary education
16th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($22 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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How is your life currently different from how it was four months ago?
My life is different from how it would have been four months ago in that I have a comfortable place to sleep in. I used to sleep in my grandmother's house and I used to strain because I would not be allowed to study late as I would want to. There were a lot of restrictions and I did not feel comfortable. Right now, I have a small room where I do spend in. I used my transfer to buy building materials such as iron sheets and nails which I used to build a room where I can also have my own privacy.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
My new goal in the four months is to save the transfers so that I may not lack school fees anymore. I would not want to be sent home for school fees arrears as it was the case before. I want to make good use of the opportunity given to me by GD.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my daily life since I started receiving these transfers is that I no longer strain at night to study because of light. Before the transfers, I used to strain to study at night at home because we used to have a kerosene lamp. The smoke emissions from the lamp also affected my health. In most cases, I would not manage to finish my homework because I would run out of kerosene. With GD transfers, I was able to save and buy a solar system which we use for lighting at night. I no longer strain and I do finish homework in time which has really given me an easy time with the teachers. My performance to has also gone up which makes me very happy.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I expect my life to change in the next six months in that I will be having money to pay for my school fees. In the past, I did not have money and my parents were not well off to cater for my school needs in time. With these savings, I know I won't be sent home again because of school fees arrears.
12th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($23 USD)
access_time almost 6 years ago
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How is your life currently different from how it was four months ago?
We have been able to buy new iron sheets with my dad and mum and built a new house for myself where I sleep currently. Before this house was built, I used to sleep in my grandmothers house that is quite some distant from our place, and it was quite cumbersome especially during the rainy seasons when i had to wade through the floods and endure the cold weather before getting to my grandmothers place.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
I expect to be paying my school fees every month when I get the monthly transfers so that the arrears can be reduced to a great extent by the time the terms comes to an end. I will also use the money to pay for my school tours that are always scheduled once in a term. Last terms I missed on a tour because I had not paid due to lack of money, but his time round I am sure I will be among those who will be going for the adventures.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference for me is that I have been able to pay my own school fees which has eased the financial burden on my parents who have been struggling so much to keep me in school. I am happy because I no longer miss classes like I used to do before when I had to stay home for a period of even three weeks before my dad could take me back to school. So far I can say that my academic performance has improved tremendously because I spend most of time in school attending classes and studying.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
We sat down as a family and agreed that we will be saving some little cash every month so that we buy a cow within the next four to five months. We know that we will be able to get enough cash into our account so that we can make the dream become a reality within the next coming few months.
7th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($23 USD)
access_time 6 years ago
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How is your life currently different from how it was four months ago?
My life is currently different from the way it was four months ago in that I have time for my studies over the weekends because I do not work for people in farm anymore to help my parents raise money for family upkeep. I am settled too whenever I'm in school knowing that my family members have something to eat, and they won't go hungry.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
I do not have a new goal for my life for the next four months but to pay attention to my studies.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my daily life in the last four months preceding the transfers is that currently I have enough time for my studies over the weekends because I no longer help people out in the farm in order to raise money for our family upkeep This is because we budget with the money GD sends us monthly to meet the needs.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
In the next six months, I expect to start up a small business while I will on December holiday so that I can raise some money for my next year's school fees.
4th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($22 USD)
access_time over 6 years ago
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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 no longer have to do casual jobs like I used to every Saturday after school to earn money for my school fees for personal needs. This has had a great
positive effect on my studies as I now have more time to read.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I expect to have completed paying this year's school fees so that I can use the next transfers to uplift my family by buying other household items like furniture.
How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
Life would be harder because my school fees would not have been paid and my father would have such a hard time providing for my family,more so now that charcoal business has been banned.
Do you have any new goals that you didn't have before receiving the transfer?
My goal is to use these transfers to complete my school fees so that my parents can have an easy time because they a very huge burden trying to provide for our large family.
Enrolled
access_time over 6 years ago
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship that I face is lighting in the house. As a student i find it difficult to study and do assignments at home because of insufficient light. We use kerosine tin lamps and this makes me to strain my eyes a lot. At times we even lack money to buy kerosine.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is during the day when I am in school and I get to interact with fellow students in class, in group discussions and out in the play ground.
What are you planning to spend your transfer on?
I am planning to spend my transfer on paying my school fees. I am a form three student and my parents have been struggling to pay fees for me and my siblings. I am now happy because I will relieve my parents from the school fees burden.
What is the achievement you are proudest of?
My proudest achievement was when I managed to perform exemplarily in sports and emerged the second best in the District on short race (100m). It motivated me and since then I've put more effort with hopes of doing much better in the coming schools competition.