GDLive Newsfeed
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.
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Completed
Newsfeed > Salama's Profile
Salama's family
Salama
landscapeCountry:
kenya
workOccupation:
Casual labor
workCampaign
Kenya Basic Income
Upcoming Stage
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Follow to be updated on Salama's next check-in.
 
33rd Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($27 USD)
access_time 2 days ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My primary goal for the coming year and beyond is to complete building my dream house, a project I’ve already begun. Not having a proper home has been challenging, but I’ve always envisioned living in an iron-roofed house. To bring this dream to life, I’ve been setting aside a portion of my monthly income to buy building materials gradually. So far, I’ve managed to buy a few iron sheets and some building poles, and I’m hopeful that construction can begin soon. An iron-roofed house will provide much-needed protection from the rain, which has been a constant struggle in my current living situation. I am determined to save more to purchase the remaining poles, timber, nails, and cover labor costs to bring this dream to fruition. In addition to my housing project, I’m also committed to enrolling my child in secondary school, as he completed primary school last year. Ensuring he continues his education is very important to me, so I’ve started saving $1,000 each month towards his school fees. Thanks to these efforts, I have managed to build most of the house and only have the door left to complete.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
When I received my recent transfers, I spent $57 to pay fees and buy books for my two children in primary school, as these items were essential for their education under the CBC curriculum. Additionally, I used $45 to purchase food for family consumption since we had none at home. I am grateful to GiveDirectly for helping ease my financial burden, especially with school fees for my six children. To support my family, I take on various casual jobs, including burning and selling charcoal and fetching water for people. This support has been invaluable in helping me provide for my children's basic needs.
 
29th Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($27 USD)
access_time 4 months ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My goal in the coming year and beyond is to build my dream house.This is because I do not have one, but my dream has always been to live in an iron-roofed house. To reach this goal, I've been saving a part of my monthly income to gradually buy the building materials. So far, I've managed to buy a few iron sheets and some building poles and hope to start construction soon. My sole focus is achieving this goal, as an iron-roofed house will protect me from the rains, which have been a nightmare in my current house. I plan to save more to buy the remaining building poles, timber, and nails, and also cover the labor costs.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I am appreciative of the financial support that has greatly helped me and my family. Upon receiving my most recent transfer, I used $45 to pay for my children's school fees. I wanted to ensure that they could dedicate themselves to their studies without any worries. I also allocate $ 18for food, as I wante to make sure we had enough for our family's consumption even after receiving the transfer. Additionally, I spent $15 on buying building material since I intend to build my house and $10 on buying a kanga, and I saved the remaining $10 in our merry-go-round for future financial needs. The remaining $4 I used on buying body oil and soap.
 
26th Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($27 USD)
access_time 7 months ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
This year, my goal is to purchase goats as an investment for the future. I plan to achieve this goal by utilizing both my upcoming transfers and my savings. Acquiring these goats will serve as a valuable investment for my children's future, as I can quickly sell them to cover their school fees when needed. Having this will give me a lot of financial relief and peace of mind as my children's needs will be taken care of. I am delighted to be a part of this life-changing opportunity.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I rely on casual jobs to support myself and my six children, but finding work is often a challenge. After my husband passed away, I struggled to afford food and school fees for my children, but I am happy that things have improved significantly. Now, I can comfortably cover all our basic expenses, and I am even in the process of building our own home. With the transfers received, I allocated $59 to purchase building poles for our new home, ensuring that my children will have enough space to live comfortably. Additionally, I used $15 to pay school fees and buy uniforms for my children, as they needed them for school. Furthermore, $28 went towards purchasing household essentials like soap, oil, and flour, which had run out. I am deeply grateful for this assistance, as it has greatly improved our living standards.
 
22nd Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($23 USD)
access_time 11 months ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My focus is on livestock ownership, considering it a key strategy for the future. I believe that even after the cessation of cash transfers, livestock will not only serve as a legacy of the funds but also as a valuable source of income. Specifically, my interest lies in goat farming due to their higher survival rate compared to other livestock, particularly poultry. I am currently grateful for the two goats I have, and my goal is to continually expand the herd whenever an opportunity arises.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
As the sole provider for my six children, I rely on sporadic jobs such as cooking at a local food stand in the village. However, these opportunities are infrequent, and the income is often insufficient to meet the needs of my children, including school fees, clothing, and food. The advent of cash transfers has significantly alleviated some of the hardships my family faced, providing a welcome relief. In the recent funds, I allocated $16 to clear school fees for all my children, ensuring that tuition debts were settled before the schools closed.  I am happy that this ensures that my children won't carry balances into the next academic year. With the Christmas season approaching, I devoted $34 to purchasing clothes and $8 for sandals, allowing my four children to enjoy the tradition of wearing new attire during the festive day. Additionally, $30 was utilized to acquire building materials like iron sheets and nails to continue the construction of my house, a project I initiated months ago. The remaining funds were directed towards purchasing food to sustain the family.
 
17th Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($25 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?
My primary objective is to ensure that my children receive a quality education. As a single parent without financial support, it is essential for me to strive to ensure my children's uninterrupted schooling. To accomplish this, I am committed to saving a minimum of $10 from my monthly income transfers, aiming to alleviate future financial challenges and provide my children with the education they deserve.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
As a single mother with six children, I have faced numerous challenges in providing for my family. Prior to receiving GiveDirectly transfers, I struggled to make ends meet through various odd jobs. However, the support from GiveDirectly has been a beacon of hope in my life. With the most recent transfer, I was able to address urgent needs. I used $10 to settle part of the school fees balance for my three children who were sent home from school. Additionally, I purchased $10 worth of food to ensure our basic needs were met and I saved the remaining amount of $14.70 to acquire roofing nails for the construction of my new house. The GiveDirectly transfers have truly been of great help to my family and I greatly appreciate
 
14th Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($27 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?
Going by the current weather condition highly characterized by drought, I have been unable to do any farming. I heavily rely on my monthly transfers to support my school-going children. I hope to launch a company providing ready food inside the center with the assurance of monthly transfers. Although it does not fetch much, I am sure it can raise at least $ 2 a day. That can go a long way in supporting my children to get food. I have to work extremely hard to support them because I am a single mother. My husband divorced me ten years ago, and the burden of catering to my three children's needs is solely on my shoulder.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
Immediately after I received my recent transfer, I spent $10 on paying school fees for my school-going children. I have three children: Happy, Tatu, and Julius, who are in Primary School. They had fee arrears, and I was afraid they would be sent home for fee collection. I always pay school fees in bits to reduce the arrears. In addition, since we have been struggling to obtain food because I do not have a reliable source of income, I prioritized spending $24 on food for the family. We used to struggle a lot, but the transfer gives us a sigh of relief.
 
10th Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($28 USD)
access_time almost 2 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I am a single parent who gets by selling charcoal and engaging in casual labor. I have school-going children for who I have been spending my transfers to take care of their school fees needs. I also pool cash from my daily labor to save towards taking care of the school fees and needs of my children. I hope this Givedirectly transfers allow my children to finish school so that they may be able to come and help me with looking for finances.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
My three children had a whopping $60 in school debt. They remained at home for more than three weeks because I was unable to raise the necessary funds to send them back to school. As the only provider for my family, I rely on temporary, part-time jobs like selling charcoal and building new houses. Due to the difficulty in finding these jobs, I spend the majority of my time at home without a job. Since I owed money for school fees, I partially paid $20 when I received my transfer so that my kids could resume their education. I also spent an additional $10 on family food. After being jobless for a full week, I was unable to purchase food due to a lack of funds. I'm relieved that my family didn't go hungry and had a lot to eat. Finally, I spent $4 on two hens. This was a good starting point for the number of chickens I intend to raise. I will sell them once they have multiplied in the future, giving me a new source of income.
 
6th Payment
Transfer Amount
3050 KES ($26 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
As a single parent, my six children rely on me for basic necessities such as food, clothing, and education. I make a living by cleaning and cooking at a food point at the trade center at most two days a week. I struggle to meet all of these needs while earning KES 180 per day because the money barely covers food, let alone school fees. In fact, when I received the transfer, my children had been absent from school for a week due to pending arrears, and we had gone two days without food. As a result, I spent KES 1,900 of the transfer funds on food and the rest on my children's education. I am grateful that my family has never gone hungry and that my children have attended school without disruptions since.
 
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
3050 KES ($26 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
The unconditional transfers from GiveDirectly have really helped changed my life. The funds are an enormous boost to my low income and have helped me cater to my family's needs, which I could not provide. I would like the organization to conduct physical follow-ups to find out the real impact of the funds on our lives.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
For the last fifteen years, I have gone through difficulties in raising my children, after my husband walked away from our marriage. The casual jobs of selling charcoal and fetching water for other people earn me little (1800 per month) which is not enough of taking care of all my family's needs (paying school fees, buying food, and buying clothes). When I received my transfer, I spent much of it (KES 2000) on paying tuition for two children who are in primary school. Because of my poor financial status, I did not pay their school fees on time, and as a result, they were often sent home. The interruptions affected their studies, and they performed poorly in their final examination. Paying tuition for my children is important so that they can perform better and catch up with the rest of the students in their classes. Besides paying tuition for my children, I spent KES 700 to buy 2 chickens. I have always dreamt of having livestock of my own and buying the hens gave me the chance to realize one of my dreams.
 
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
1200 KES ($11 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I had woken very early in the morning and I was busy building my house with mud. Being the only parent and earning little, I decide to build the house myself. A big part of the wall had broken off, and this posed as a major health risk to my children because of the cold weather during the night. While in repairing the house, I received the text message that I had received my first transfer. I was thrilled and my face was filled with joy. After finishing the repair, I quickly headed to the Mpesa shop and withdrew the money and bought the food for my family.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
 The money has made a difference in my life by giving new hope in life. I have been really struggling to feed my children and also paying their school fees. By buying the food and paying school fees for the children, it was a major push for me, considering the struggles I have been going through.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
When I separated from my husband, the sole responsibility of taking of my four children rested upon me. Manual jobs are what I do to look after my children. I fetch water for other people and get paid. I also work in quick contact jobs such as helping in hotels. The little I earn is just enough to feed my children and I have nothing left to save or engage in other activities, such as starting a business. I have severally been unable to pay school fees for my children and they were sent home. Them being sent home has distracted them and has even started performing poorly. When I received my transfer spent half of the transfer to clear off part of the school debt so that they won't be sent home and stay in school and continue with their education. Because of the little money I earn used the other half of KSH 600 to buy 5 packets of maize flour. I bought the food in bulk so that we do not have to sleep hungry.
 
Enrolled
access_time almost 3 years ago
 
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I came back home from a failed marriage. I am a single mother of six children, four of whom are in school. I live with my mother in a one-room house. We are so squeezed in there and sleeping arrangements uncomfortable. Unused to sell chapati for a living. I had to stop because we don't have enough water to run the business. With these funds, I can at least afford to pay a motorbike rider to fetch water and deliver it to me. I will reopen my business but this time, I'll make it an eatery. The money I'll make will help me pay school fees for my children and help my mother build a bigger house.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Somehow, I have been able to send my children to school. I put my heart at work, sell as many chapatis as I can then plan the money I get from that. I prioritize school fees because I want my children to study without interruption.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Every day, my sisters and I walk very long distances in search of water. Even after walking far, the only water we get is from the man-made dams around. It is not fit for human consumption but we don't have a choice. We use it for everything including cooking and drinking.