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?
We were very happy when we got the transfer. It was at night at around 11 pm and I was at home with my husband. We were not yet asleep. My phone had earlier on gone off and hence I had placed it on charging. So before we went to sleep, I decided to remove it on charging since the battery was already full. I switched it on and immediately my phone notified me that I had a new message. We had earlier heard some people in the neighborhood saying that the transfers had been sent and hence we wondered if this could be the SMS that we had also been waiting for. In order to clear our doubts, we immediately opened the SMS and indeed it was it. We were so happy on reading it and we couldn't believe that we had KES 55000 in our mobile money account. We went to sleep that day with big smiles on our faces.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The transfer money brought a big difference in our lives. We were able to buy a bag of maize and hence we have food for our consumption. Other than that, we were able to buy a calf and more chickens that are going to enable us earn more income. The income is going to help us in catering for our various needs especially seeking medical attention for my condition. We are so much grateful for everything. May God bless you.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
We spent our first transfer money on various things that were important to us. We bought a calf at KES 20000, furniture at KES 5000 where we bought some chairs plus its cushions and a table. Apart from that, we also bought fifteen chickens at a cost of KES 400 per chicken and a bag of maize at KES 4000 for our consumption. I then saved KES 15000 so that I could be using it to cater for my medical expenses, that is, seeking medical attention and buying medicine for my diabetic condition. Buying more chickens was my biggest priority upon receiving the transfers. This is because I am a commercial poultry farmer and I have been rearing chickens for quite a long time, that is, since the year 1995. I usually sell the chicks hatched and the eggs. The money that I get from the sales has been helping me in seeking medical care for my diabetes. Apart from the chickens, we were also targeting to buy a calf with the transfer to add to the other cows that we have. We usually sell milk and with the calf, we will be able to increase our milk supply and income when it matures and calves. Thank you so much GiveDirectly for your support.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means putting my dream of owning a dairy farm into life as well as scaling up my business of rearing poultry farming. I will plan KES 50000 as a starter capital for this business. This will help us earn more income through the sale of milk and poultry products. To help me avoid perennial food shortages in our household, I will use KES 20000 to buy maize grains, beans grains and clothing's to my family members. I have been ailing from diabetes for some time, this made us struggle a lot to get money to buy drugs. My husband is a subordinate staff in Kipsuter secondary school and he is the sole breadwinner for the family. His earning is little about KES 10000 monthly. This is not enough for my medication and buying other household essentials like food and clothing. Thus with the remaining money, I will plan to go for a better medication.
What is the happiest part of your day?
With the little family income we have and despite my medical condition, we managed to put something on the table. This makes me feel happy and have hope of raising my family well.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
I was diagnosed with diabetes, this has brought suffering and struggle to me and my family. With the high cost of medication and drugs, family expense has ballooned. This has been hell to us now that my husband remains to be the only sole breadwinner of the household. He is a subordinate staff in Kipsuter secondary school and he earns little money about KES 10000 monthly. This is not enough for the family to buy food and pay for my medical bills.
