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.
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2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($441 USD)
access_time over 1 year ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
At the moment, I do not have a new goal because I am still struggling to raise school fees for my six children. Raising them has never been easy, but I am grateful for the generous boost I received from GiveDirectly. Even though the focus has been to clear their school fees, I have other challenges among them; providing food for my family and paying medical bills every time my family member visits the hospital.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
GiveDirectly's support brought a lot of changes in the village. They equally distributed the support to all the members of the village with no bias. Every household received an equal amount and was allowed to spend on whatever was deemed fit for them. I appreciated the support, and I wish the same would continue in other villages.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I have a family of nine at the moment, up from five after my daughter came back from her house with her three children. In the past few months before the receipt of the first transfer, life had never been easier since the resources we had been sharing were insufficient. On receiving the second transfer, I saw it as well to ensure that my daughter and grandchildren settle down in their own house. I spent KES 30000 on buying them a piece of land that is now under construction. I also spent KES 4000 on buying a new piece of furniture for my new house, paid KES 1000 school fees for the six kids we have, and used the remaining amount to settle the medical bill when I visited the hospital.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($476 USD)
access_time 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around 6am and I heard my phone vibrate and I requested my son to bring me the phone since I was still in bed. Upon checking, it was an Mpesa message from Givedirectly. I was super elated and woke up immediately to celebrate the good news with my family.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
Construction of a decent and spacious two roomed housed is my biggest daily difference.I am glad that the house is almost complete and we are going to move in a few weeks time. In addition, ability two have three meals in a day is also my greatest happiness.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
Upon withdrawal of my first transfer, I prioritized on constructing a two roomed house at a cost of KES 30000.We had been living in a grass thatched house which was in a poor state.During rainy seasons it would leak and hence being rained on. I am happy that we are soon going to move in and start enjoying warmth and enough space. I also purchased a heifer worth KES 15000.This is an investment hence once the heifer grows, it will calf and we can enjoy milk supply in future and we can cut the cost of buying milk on a daily basis.With KES 3500 we used in buying a sack of maize which will sustain us for sometime as we wait for the second transfer. With the remaining amount, we used in purchasing clothes for our entire household members.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means that I will first get another source of income through buying a dairy cow at KES 30,000. I will be selling milk and use the money to provide for my family. I will then send the rest of the money on buying land for my daughter who separated with her husband and now lives working as a maid. If she had land, she would not be going to toil for other people earning only about KES 300 per day, many miles away from home. This means that she has to stay away from her children,who will miss parental care and at the same time, she is unable to provide for the.
What is the happiest part of your day?
In the last six months, I haven't had much to celebrate for. It has always been a struggle to raise my children and grandchildren. I hope to have more happiness now that I am receiving these transfers, that will open a way for me to eatn money from selling milk!
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Lack of enough food for my household is the biggest challenge that I face.I am relying on a small business, vending bananas in a nearby town. From this I earn about KES 500 on a good day. Market days occur only twice a week. This means that I have to budget well to buy enough food that can last us until the next time when I can go to the market again.Having yo also meet other needs like school fees anf upkeep money for the school going children means that I cannot always buy enough foodstuffs.
