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.
There will be no further updates from this completed recipient.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($436 USD)
access_time over 1 year ago
check
How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I wish to continue saving some money from my business to be able to pay the school fees for my children on time. It is always the dream of every parent to ensure that their children get the best education. Besides that, I wish to ensure that I keep my business running and meet all the demands of my clients.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
The training and the registration were perfectly done without any discrimination. The majority of the people who received the transfer spent it well on income-generating projects. I do not find anything that GiveDirectly did not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent $200 on shopping for my two children who were joining college. I did not have the money for the shopping, but I had saved some amount for the college fees. I felt so happy when I received the transfer from GiveDirectly because I knew I would be able to do the shopping without any struggle. I rely on small-scale farming whereby I plant maize, beans and vegetable but this is mostly for consumption. I did not have the extra produce to sell. Apart from that, I run a small business retail shop and this is where I was able to raise the college fees for my children. They were able to get all the items on time and they are currently studying well without any struggle. Besides that, I spent $200 on adding more stock to my retail business. I am so happy because I am able to meet all the demands of my customers. This has enabled me to get a good profit compared to when I had not received the transfer. The remaining amount of money I spent on food, clothes and household items that we were missing at that particular time. I am so happy because GiveDirectly had changed our living standards.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($460 USD)
access_time almost 2 years ago
attach_money
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around 7 Pm When I heard a message notification from my home. I was still at work I have a small retail business. When I checked it out I could not believe my eyes it was a message confirming that I have received KES 55,000 from GiveDirectly. That was the highest amount I have ever received. I immediately closed the shop and hurry back home to inform my family members everyone was so happy and we all celebrated. I knew that I would be able to expand my business of retail shops. This is because the stock was so small and I wanted to meet the demand of my customers.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that I have added the stock to my retail business. This was my main concern since this is the main source of income for the family. I had small stock and this had reduced due to the basic needs of the family and paying school fees for my children in college. I had always wished to meet the demand of my customers but this was not possible since I did not have the money to buy more goods. When I received the transfer from GiveDirectly I felt so happy and we decided to invest KES 30,000 in the stock. I am so grateful because currently, I can meet all the demands of my customers and this helps me to generate income daily. This boosted my morale and made me devote much of my time to making this the main and biggest investment. I can meet all the basic needs of my children including paying the fees on time. Were it not GiveDirectly all this could have taken quite some time, I am so grateful for the support.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent KES 30,000 on adding stock to my retail shop business. This was my main concern since I had so many customers but my stock was small. besides that, this is also where I generate my income to meet the daily needs of my family and pay school fees for my children. Currently, My stock is enough and I can say that my customers are happy because they get all they need from the shop. I can generate income that I use on paying school fees for my children in college. The remaining amount of money I sent to my two children to pay rent and purchase household items. I am so grateful for the support because GiveDirectly has boosted my business.
Enrolled
access_time 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means that I will expand my business that I recently started. I have braiding skills and I am using this to make school uniforms as my source of income. I am supposed to be making a profit but the materials that I use to make them are not enough. Investing this money will strengthen the business to an extent that I will double my profits. To achieve this, I will spend KES 55,000 on stocking materials and the rest on school fees and farming.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Sufficient rainfall over the last six months led to a good maize harvest from my farm. I will use the maize for food over the next three months. I am happy that I am going to save a good amount of money that would otherwise be used on buying the food, on expanding my busiest,therefore increasing my income.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
I am currently struggling with paying school fees for my children in the University. I am trying to generate income from a small business that has not yet picked up due to lack of capital to strengthen it. I will spend part of the transfer on this.
