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 ($468 USD)
access_time almost 3 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My goals were to build a house and pay school fees for my children and I do not have any new goal now.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
What GiveDirectly does well bis supporting the poor in the society and I haven't noticed anything that you need to improve.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
The biggest distress in my life is having my five children sleep in my neighborhood sine my single room house couldn't accommodate us all. My husband and I have always wished to build a big house which would accommodate both of us but poverty and drought have been the biggest challenge. Previously, we would sell cow milk but when the drought struck all our cows died because of drought and we were left with nothing to depend on. My goal was to build a bigger house and pay school fees for my children and that's all what I spend on my second transfer. I spend KES 40000 on building a two room house and KES 12000 to pay school fees. I am so happy and contented that my have a house big enough for the family and my children are nolonger out of school oftenly due to fees arrears.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($488 USD)
access_time almost 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around 10 AM when we taking breakfast when my mobile phone started ringing so loudly. I didn't bother to check since I was used to the Safaricom messages every morning. Before we could finish what we were doing, another message popped in and I was so curious. I decided to check who it could be. I didn't believe what I saw, it was an Mpesa message from Segovia Technology they had finally debited my first transfers as promised earlier on. I was so excited and we had to celebrate as a family for we knew that we would finally sleep in a better shelter through the financial support.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
I have been married for over ten years, and I have been living a sorrowful life. This is because I have been sheltering in a temporary small hut with grass-thatched roofs. The roofing has been leaking all through whenever it could rain. Secondly, I had to change the grass roofing yearly, this was costly according to my financial status. My spouse has been the breadwinner and the little he could earn was not even enough to fend for the six children. This means it would take ages for us to build a decent house. Therefore the moment I received my first transfer, my first thought was to change the state of my house and live comfortably like the rest of the people. I am now a happy mother since my family and I are now sleeping under a spacious iron-roofed house. I will no longer get stressed up during the rainy season like before and all sorts of troubles that I have been undergoing.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent part of my first transfer on clearing school fees arrears for my daughter who was just enrolled recently. Later on, I bought twenty pieces of iron sheets at KES 22100, the building poles at KES 6000, nails, and the labor charge. I bought all these with an intention of the condition of a new house because the previous one was very small with seven then family members it couldn't accommodate us all. Therefore some of my children had to shelter at their grandmother's house which was also small. In addition to that, I bought new school uniforms for my four children who are still in primary school. With the amount of money that had remained, I bought sufficient foodstuffs for my family
Enrolled
access_time 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money from GiveDirectly means a more spacious house which can accommodate my family of seven. As a household, we are planning to use 40,000 KES to construct a two bedroom house. we will use a further 20,000KES to furnish the house so that it can be of the desired standard. We have been sharing one room for many years now and this has made me uncomfortable. The new two bedroom house will assure us of privacy given that our children will have their own separate room. I will use the balance to pay for my children school fees so that they can have enough study time in school.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Morning is the happiest part of my day because I wake up in the morning and prepare my kid for school. Seeing my children heading to school makes me happy unlike in the afternoon when I engage in energy draining household chores.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship I have faced in my life is lack of a spacious house to accommodate my entire family. Moreover, the house is not furnished; I don't have a bed. This has forced my children to sleep on the living room floor. This is life threatening because the floor is usually cold at night and therefore risky for anyone to sleep on. In addition to this, my husband and I lack the desired privacy.
