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 ($527 USD)
access_time 4 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 now different because I have added a piece of land that I would not have managed to buy at my own cost. One of my goals has to give my children a home that they can always have pride in. I am a single mother and my biggest ambition has been to be an independent woman and bring up my family at my own place. I feel GiveDirectly has fulfilled this since I have added a piece of land to a small piece I had bought before. I am currently so happy that I have a better space to do some farming and give my children a place too to carry on their activities. I am so happy I enjoy peace of mind and a humble environment in my place struggling to bring up my family. I sincerely thank GiveDirectly for the unconditional transfer I got from.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
I am happy with GD ways of doing things ranging from the selection of the recipient, GD is firm and fair on its decision. I urge, Give directly do more on train recipients criteria to avoid others being locked out of mischievous action trying to meet the criteria eligibility.
What did you spend your second transfer on?
The remaining amount at the Christmas celebration. As a single parent, my struggle has be to have a place of my own to call home. I had always dreamt of buying a piece of land to live with my family a dream which had been somehow successful. I had bought a small piece of land before GD came and when I got their transfer I took KES20000 to pay an installment fee to acquire a piece of land from a neighbor. I am happy that my dream grew better coursey of GiveDirectly. I took another KES15000 from my transfer to buy building materials in preparation to build my children their own house. I had wished to build them a better house but the scarce resource never gave me the chance thus I thank GiveDirectly for the support. In addition, I spent some amount on my household daily basic needs mainly food and the household item that includes chairs and beds to replace the old ones I had. We spent some amount with my family on our clothing and Christmas celebration that brought happiness in us. Thank you Give Directly.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($531 USD)
access_time over 4 years ago
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Describe the biggest difference in your daily life.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that I have paid school fees for my children in secondary school. I usually depend on casual jobs in the village to get money to meet the basic needs of my family and also to pay school fees for my children. The amount of money that I get from these jobs is too small and cannot gather for all the basic needs incuding school fees for my children. Most of the time my children would be sent home to collect the school fees and because I could not get the money immediuatel they were forced to stay home for a longer time. This was affecting their performance. Currently, I have cleared all the arrears and they are in school full time, they are no longer sent home like before. Their performance has improved compared to previous terms. I am so happy because I no longer get stressed up. I have time to work on my own farm and reduce the time dedicated to casual jobs. Through this, my family has enough food. I am so happy because GiveDirectly has changed our standard of living.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I felt so happy the moment I received my first transfer. I remember it was very early in the morning when I heard the message from my phone. When I checked it I felt so happy because I have never received such an amount of money before. I knew I would be able to renovate my house and clear school fees for my children in secondary school. My family members were so happy and the really celebrated.
What did you spend your first transfer on?
I spent my first transfer to built a house for my son. I also paid school fees for my children in primary school and secondary school and they are no longer sent home like before and the rest of the money I used it to buy food for the family and I am also planning to renovate my own house.
Enrolled
access_time over 4 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
It has been two years since one of my neighbours who is well off gave me one of her dairy cattle to take care of as my own, after she saw me struggle buying milk due to my low financial status. This money will therefore enable me to pay for the cow so that i can own it fully. I also plan to add one more dairy cow for milking since i have seen the benefits of it. I usually sell 6litres of milk daily from one cow, 4litres in the morning and 2litres in the evening at ksh 30 per litre, an income that has seen me providing basic needs for my children. The remaining part of my transfer will ease my burden of paying school fees for my son who will be joining college next year.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Usually, my routine involves cutting nappier grass for my cow in the morning before milking it and selling the milk to the local hotel around. I then head to my neighbour's house to look for any job available that would earn me some wages at the end of the day. Coming back home in the evening having gotten some money to enable me satisfy the needs of my family is the happiest part of my day
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
My spouse divorced me 20 years ago when he realized that i could not bear children, something that has been the biggest hardship i have faced in my life. I ended up spending a lot of money in different hospitals so as to proof to everyone that i was not barren as was claimed, yet i never achieved any success. This forced me to buy my own land using all the savings from the cereals business that i had engaged myself in during the period i was married. I was latter forced to adopt the four children i am currently taking care of at a fee in order to avoid loneliness and ridicules from my relatives and friends. I have been taking care of them single handedly engaging in low paying casual jobs (ksh100 per day)in people's farms so as to provide their needs as well as pay for their school fees. One of them is in secondary school and the other two are in primary school.
