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 ($493 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?
I live in a hill and going downhill to fetch water is a headache.I never knew that I would ever have a water tank. Due to this, I no longer go to the river. I never had money to use at once to pay school fees and shopping for my son. Taking a loan might be easy but repayment is hard as we have nothing to use in repaying or as guarantor.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, GiveDirectly does well by uplifting people through cash transfer and Ido not see anything that they do not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
When I received my transfer, I spent KES 15000 to repay a debt that I had. I had bought a heifer on higher purchase terms and I had not finished paying for it. Also, I spent KES 5000 to buy some sand and saved 10,000 that I am planning to use in cementing my floor. Finally, I still have KES 20000 that I am planning to use it in paying school fees for my son who is joining high school this year.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($500 USD)
access_time over 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was shocking for me when I confirmed that I had received money from GiveDirectly amounting to KES55000. I had never received such an amount I wasn't expected to receive it in the nearby future. I immediately thought of how beautiful my home will look like after investing the money to complete them up. This was my priority as I had struggled for long to complete them.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
In our area, we use open water pans as our main source of water for drinking and other domestic use. This poses a serious health risk as this water is shared with livestock and the area is characterized by poor sanitation due to open defecation. As a concerned mother about the health of my family, I decided to use my first transfers to provide safe drinking water to her family. I bought a 5000 Litre water tank worth KES21000 to be able to harvest rainwater. My wish to own a water tank was long overdue as I had to prioritize educating my children. To me, this is the biggest difference in my daily life and I am grateful to GiveDirectly for restoring my family pride and dignity.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
My home is located next to the top of a hill in my area and this has been challenging for me to get clean water. Besides the distance to the river and nearby water pans, I am not assured of clean water since what we have are collectively used by both animals and human beings and they are open to all sorts of pollution. To be receiving this money was a chance for me to start collecting water thus I spent KES21000 to buy a water tank that has helped me collect clean rainwater for our domestic use. My children's education has been one of my biggest goals since I know with education, my children will have a better future life. I took KES15000 from the first transfer for my children's school fees. In addition, I used KES3500 to buy a wire mesh to help me fence my compound and the remaining amount I used on my family's basic needs mainly food and clothing.
Enrolled
access_time over 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I am a farmer keeping livestock and at the same time growing crops. Having a boundary line to keep off my livestock from destroying my crops and those of my neighbours has been one of my long term plans. Receiving this money means that I will be able to fence the entire farm including the subdivisions so that my livestock will not be able to neither destroy my crops nor the ones for my neighbours. Additionally, I have a grown up boy who after circumcision later this year will need a small house to stay. Therefore, I will use part of the transfer to build a house for him. This will cost around 20,000 shillings.
What is the happiest part of your day?
After I am done with my usual household chores, I involve myself in cattle grazing until afternoon. Afterwards, I head to my farm to carry out some farming activities like weeding, transplanting etc on my vegetables,maize and beans growing there. The happiest part of my day is in the evening since this is the time I get an opportunity to rest after a long day of intensive work.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Excluding the past two years, I have been living in abject poverty for the better part of my marriage life. During those times, we used to skip one meal a day, my kids being sent out of school dues to fee arrears and literally buying all sorts of household items. This was because together with my husband, we used to solely depend on casual jobs to cater for the basic needs of the family. The jobs were unreliable and the little we got could not satisfactorily fend for all of us.
