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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2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($493 USD)
access_time over 3 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My life is currently different than how it would have been had I not receive the transfer because I now live in an iron roofed house. Because of this, I am now able to collect clean rain water for drinking and domestic use. Also, living in an iron-roofed house is a sign of wealth and class in my neighborhood.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, GiveDirectly does well by giving out financial aid and their officers are very respectful and I do not see anything that they do not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
When I received my second transfer, I spent around KES 45000 to complete building a house for my son and to also build a spacious kitchen. I decided to build an iron-roofed spacious kitchen since the one I had was old and grass thatched. Getting grass to use in replacing the old ones is a tedious and hard task as they're no longer easily available. I spent the remaining amount on food and to buy two pairs of decent clothes for my two sons and myself.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($501 USD)
access_time almost 4 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
The moment I received the money, I was very happy and was very grateful to God. I even went ahead and bought meat for my family so we could celebrate GD money.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference is living in an iron roofed house because I was struggling with payment of school fees for my kids whom most only finished form four. I have installed piped water which would not be able to access clean water.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent KES 31, 000 on purchase of Ironsheets. 25 Ironsheets for my two roomed house and 18 lronsheets for my son's one roomed house. I decided to built a better house because the one I had was old, worn out and had grass thatched roof. I also expect to get clean rain water from the Ironsheets roof because the water from the river isn't good for consumption. I have also installed clean piped water at KES 9000 to reduce water buying costs because we used to purchase clean water at 5KES per 20 litres.I have also bought a 2500 litres water tank to store water for domestic use and livestock consumption.
Enrolled
access_time 4 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I will use this money to build a three roomed iron roofed house at an approximate cost of $300. This will enable me to harvest rain water during rainy seasons hence a relief in having to walk 4 kilometers to the nearby water pan in search of water for domestic use. I will therefore have buy a 3000 litres water tank @ $180. I live in my one roomed hut with my 19 year old son. According to our culture, a grown up boy should not live under one roof with his parents but we got no option on this since I only engage in a small business of buying eggs and selling them at a profit and I use all the money I earn to buy food only, the reason why I have never afforded to build him his own house. I will also spend $300 to buy a dairy cow whose income from selling milk will supplement my daily income from my business.
What is the happiest part of your day?
After spending the whole day in my small stall at the shopping center where I normally sell eggs at a profit to my clients, closing business in the evening after calculating my profit of the day is the time I feel motivated and happy always.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
It is my wish that my last born son who completed his secondary school education last year should proceed to college, but my small business of buying and selling eggs at a profit of $8 weekly only enables me to buy food for my family. He always reminds me of his dream of joining a nursing school next year but so far I don't know whether I will be able to continue educating him. This is the biggest hardship I face.
