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 ($442 USD)
access_time 2 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
The new goal that I have now is to start horticulture farming. I will plant potatoes, beans and tomatoes. This will enable me to get an income since I will be selling the produce at the market. Apart from that, I will get enough food for my family.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
GiveDirectly does well by giving money to the poor in the community to build better and more spacious houses. Some have started businesses while others have invested in dairy-keeping projects. This has changed the standard of living for everyone in the community. I do not find anything that GiveDirecly did not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent KES 10,000 on school fees for my daughter at the university. Currently, she is now studying well without any worry and stress like before. This was the biggest challenge that I was facing at that time. I spent KES 40,000 on purchasing more materials that were needed and completed the construction of the house that I had started using the previous transfer. I am so grateful because I have a decent and spacious house. This was my main objective and I have achieved it. The remaining amount of money I spent on food and clothes for my children.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($484 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 11:00 pm and I had just retired to bed when I heard my phone ring and I definitively knew it was a mesge. It was so unusual for me to get a message at such hours of the night. I checked and confirms d that I had indeed received money from GiveDirectly. I was overwhelmed with joy. Waited until morning before I could call my husband ND who works as a security officer in Nairobi to share the good news with him. He was equally very happy. We later planned on how we were going to spend the money.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in our daily lives is in the water tank that we bought. The sight of it makes me so much happy and grateful at the sme time. We would not have been able to buy the tank anytime soon considering that we rely heavily on gaa fming to make ends meet and casual work done by my husband. These hustles can only give us enough money to buy basic household needs and leaves us with very little or no amount at all to save. We have also had peace of mind having paid school fesa and settled our two children in school successfully. We feel we can breath d organize ourselves to make other valuable investments going forwwrd
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I used KES 32000 to buy a water tank and used another KES 10000 to pay school fees for my two children who are both in collage. The remaining amount was used to buy the basic household needss including food and clothes. I chose to buy a water tank since this is something we needed so much as a family. We had managed to build an iron sheet roofed house and we needed to gather the rain water in it and bring to an end the perennial lack of water. With this tank already bought we now have access to clean drinking water and we will no longer have fi travel for long distances in search of this very important commodity in our household. We feel so happy that we were able to accomplish all these within a short time and we are looking forward to accomplishing much more bigger things with the second transfer.
Enrolled
access_time 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I am lucky my piece of land borders a bigger river in our area. I am a farmer and this serves my livestock well and my kitchen garden. Since we have no other options, we collect water for domestic use from this river stream. I enjoy it being near, but its water is not good for domestic use since livestock drink from and all other dirty things are washed into during the rainy season. We are forced to use this since rainwater can not last long enough. To be receiving this money means healthy living. I am planning to use KES 33000 to buy a 5000-liter water tank. This is an assurance of clean water for us. I will no longer have to incur the cost of buying treatment or be worried about the health of my family. Thank you GiveDirectly for coming through for me.
What is the happiest part of your day?
I love education having seen from friends, relatives, and neighborhoods how their lives are better than ours. I have prioritized my children's education among my family's needs so that they can have a better life in the future. In the last six months, my third born completing his Diploma brought joy into my life. I am so happy that I do not have to raise his fee again. He has been frequently getting casual jobs that have assisted him to earn some income.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
I am a subsistence farmer and my husband is a casual laborer in Nairobi. Life has not been easy for us even with these two sources of income. Our daily household needs are overwhelming more so our children's education. Farming would have served us better if we had enough resources compared to casual jobs. Currently, scarce resources in our family is a challenge I am facing.
