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 ($435 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 would like to grow my business with time. Educate my children and support them with daily basic needs fully. As I face my daily life, there is still a lot to do in life and I have not reached it. I hope for the best as time goes by.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
Thank you so much GiveDirectly for your support. Indeed, I do not have anything to complain about since You are like an eye-opener to me. I lacked a lot in the past and there was nothing I could do. At least now I own a motorbike and my children are able to go to school for a whole year without issues. I also managed to boost my business courtesy of GiveDirectly.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent the kes. 45000 from the first transfer, I received on buying a secondhand motorcycle for my husband to operate a taxi. We believed that this motorcycle will be able to bring some daily income in order to support our family with basic needs. I also spent kes. 7800 in paying school fees for my two children and the remaining kes. 200 bought food.
With the second transfer, I spent kes. 28000 paying school fees for all my five children. Boosted my Grocery shop and fish business with kes. 8000 and bought food with the remaining amount. Before I started receiving the transfers, I was not able to feed my family well, we could skip without eating some meals. Thank you so much GiveDirectly for changing my life and my family’s life. At least my children are going to school for a whole year without school fees arrears.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($471 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
The moment I received the transfers was one of those happy moments as I had no money for my daily use. I received the transfers when previously I slept in an empty stomach together with all my six children, I was so happy to receive the money as I knew my children were going to have a regular and balanced diet.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
Having source of income, from my business,there is food for my family as my husband too contributes from his business of of a rider. We no longer struggle financially as before the transfers. Skipping of meals is now a thing of the past, for the past one month my family has been feeding on healthy foods.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent Kshs 45,000 to buy a motorcycle for my husband, to run the family's errands as well as for business purposes. My husband had no source of income and most of the times he could work as a casual worker, of which, whatever he was paid on a daily basis could not put food on the table.
I started a grocery business , whereby I used Kshs 10,000. I decided on this kind of business as it has high demand .
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means I will be able to construct a decent three-bedroom house for my family of seven. The current house I own has a leaking roof and is no longer safe for my family. This will cost me a total of KES 50,000. I will use a further KES 45,000 to buy three indigenous diary cows for milk production each cow valued at KES 15,000. The milk produced will boost my family's nutritional status and at the same time my family's income from the sale of the surplus. Relying on my husband's palm wine tapping job which earns him KES 8,000 a month has proven unsustainable. Doing all this will grant me the peace of mind I have always desired as a mother.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Since my children have closed schools, I always share meals with then and this makes me happy. I had missed them for over three months and I am always worried when my children are not around with me.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest challenge I am currently facing is the lack of a reliable source of income to attend to my family's needs such as food and education. My husband only earns KES 8,000 per month from his palm wine taping job which is not enough to even support my family of seven for 15 days.
