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 ($421 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 intend to keep cultivating vegetables, cabbage, beans, and maize. As we get ready for the rainy season, I'm hoping to work hard on my farm so that when it's time to harvest, I can obtain a nice harvest sale and earn money to buy wholesome food for my family, pay for their education, and take care of other essential requirements.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
The transfers I have received from GiveDirectly have made me delighted. Yes, it has significantly altered my life. Further transfers would be welcome so that I may keep growing as a person.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
The second transfer helped me in building a two-roomed kitchen for my wife. The one we had initially was small and had an old iron sheet roof. Its walls were old too and made of mud. I spent $350 on building it. My daughters would sleep with us in the main house because the kitchen was so small and only my sons would sleep in it. I thank God my daughters have found a new spacious room to sleep in. I even added a ceiling board to make it better. My daughters will sleep in one room and my sons would sleep in another room. I also spent $800 on paying school fees for my daughter who is in college. Bought food, and school uniforms for my primary children too. I am a father of four. I do casual work, cattle keeping, and farming while my wife sells clothes. Thank you so much for the support
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($463 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around 8:00 pm when I received a message from GiveDirectly that confirmed the receipt of the first transfer. With my children at home, we were very excited and thanked God and GiveDirectly for the significant support. My children were so happy that the plans we had been having to facilitate their studies were coming to pass.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is the purchase of a dairy cow that has been providing enough milk to my family. Since then, we have enjoyed plentiful supply both for household use and also surplus for sale to meet other household bills.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
With great thankfulness for the receipt of the support from GiveDirectly, I had to take a KES 5000 tithe to the church to show gratitude to God for the provision I had received. I then spend KES 35000 on buying a dairy cow from a neighbor with whom we had been enjoying a plentiful supply of milk for the past few weeks. It was a double blessing that it calved down just a week after paying the owner and now providing us with surplus milk for sale. In addition, I cleared school fees for my elder daughter, who had just completed her grade twelve. I spent the remaining on buying foodstuff for my family of six that is so happy and grateful for the support to date.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means a better living standard for my family. I sold my properties to raise school fees for my 3 children at the college level and 1 in primary school. As a subsistence farmer, I was not able to raise KES 200,000 that was needed for their school fees yearly. I will be excited to own a dairy cow in my compound again that I have been wishing to have. I am planning to purchase a dairy cow worth KES35,000. The rest I will use in stocking my spouse's business and renovating our house.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Payment of school fees has not been an easy task for me but I am happy now I am relieved. Currently, I have one child in primary education, the other 3 completed their secondary education 2 months ago.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The challenge we are facing currently is financial constraints. We have invested much in educating our 3 children. We sold our dairy cows which were our main source of earnings to raise KES200,000 for school fees. Though we do Subsistence farming as our source of income now it is not sustainable due to prolonged droughts.
