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?
As I walked back from the farm to plough, a message suddenly popped up on my phone, confirming the receipt of $200 from GiveDirectly. My heart swelled with happiness, and I couldn't wait to share the news with my husband, who was away from home. I immediately called him to break the news, and his response was filled with excitement and gratitude. The first thing that came to my mind was fulfilling the plans we had already discussed with my husband, and I was eager to start making progress on those goals.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
For many years, I struggled to secure capital to plant my farm, leaving it unplanted at times. Whenever I managed to get the chance to plant, I had to do it alone without casual laborers because I couldn't afford to hire them for a week. However, this time, I was able to hire seven people to plant for me, which was a rare occurrence. With their help, my maize is now doing well. God bless you GiveDirectly.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
My husband works as a driver in the city, and we rely on his income. I also do casual jobs and crop farming, but our income is not sustainable. When I received my first transfer from GiveDirectly, I invested $70 in my maize farm for planting and weeding. For years, we have struggled with capital, leaving our land unplanted sometimes, and drought has been another issue. However, This season, we were lucky as there were rains, and GiveDirectly's cash came at the right time. Additionally, I gave my son $20 for transport back to school when schools were opening. I also repaired my house door at $50, as it had been faulty for months. Closing the door was difficult while away from home, and it was risky because of fear of debt. I also bought a table for $15; we only had one, so I added another. I used the remaining $45 on food. Thank you GiveDirectly.
Enrolled
access_time 4 months ago
What do you plan to do with the cash transfer?
We are still living in one house with all my sons, I do not have financial muscle to build them a house. GiveDirectly gives me an opportunity to build them a one roomed house costing about KES 30000. Buying food daily is costly, this motivates me spend KES 35000 of my transfer on farming. I will lease a piece of land and plant maize crop. This will enable my family to have enough food.
My son Timothy Leyon Kimiti joined Kilindini secondary school this year. I am impressed that this academic year, my son will not have any school fees problem. I will use KES of my transfers to pay for his school fees.
What is the happiest part of your day?
I have been struggling to pay school fees for my daughter Sheilah Bintiyon who sat for her national examination last year. Although she never had quality time for her education due fees arrears, she managed to perform well in her exams. This made me happy. I am now planning to
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Water is a big problem in our village, we buy water from the nearby water shop for domestic use. This comes with another additional cost to my family. I am a casual labourer and what I earn is peanut. After budgeting what I receive from working, I am left with little money to buy my family enough clean water for domestic use. We end up limiting the use of water, some of us could even go for two days without taking bath. Our biggest part of the land is not arable, we end up buying food for the family which is costly. On average we spend about KES 400 on food a day. Comparing with my daily earning of KES 350, I have nothing to save and invest.
