GDLive Newsfeed
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.
Stages:
 
Enrollment
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Transfers
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Completed
Newsfeed > Recho's Profile
Recho's family
Recho
landscapeCountry:
kenya
workOccupation:
Small business
faceAge:
58
workCampaign
Kenya Large Transfer
There will be no further updates from this completed recipient.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($496 USD)
access_time almost 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 different than it would have been if I never received the transfers in that I have bought a water tank. I used to walk for a long distance to get clear water for drinking and for domestic used. This was taking much of my time which I could have used to do other chores. During the rainy season it's so slippery and this is so risky and one can likely fall down and get injured. My grandchild usually helps but but this is after school. When I received the second transfer I bought a water tank for storing clear water for domestic and for my cows. This has reduce the amount of time that I could used to look for water. I am planning to start a horticulture farming because I have enough water to water it. I will be in a position to have enough vegetables for the family and sell the surplus at the market to earn an income to meet other basic household needs. I am so grateful for the support.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion GiveDirectly does well by giving money to the poor in the community to build better houses, buy dairy cows and pay school fees for children in various schools. I did not find anything that GiveDirectly did not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spend the money I received from GiveDirectly to buy water tank for storing water, heifer, food and the rest of the money I am planning to to buy material to cement ground place that will place the tank.
 
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($502 USD)
access_time 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around 1:30 pm and I was at home busy preparing lunch for my children. I heard an SMS alert on my phone and I decided to check it. I was so happy to see that it was an M-Pesa SMS saying that we had received the lump sum transfer as promised. I jumped up with joy and I even forgot that I was preparing lunch. I gave thanks to God because he had opened a way for me.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The transfer from GiveDirectly is going to bring a big difference in my life and that of my family. I will be able to build the store that I have always desired. I will hence have a place to store the cows’ feeds that they can consume even during the dry season. I will hence no longer be having worries about what the cows are to eat and I can relax because I am not able to move around that much due to the ailment on my foot. Having bought some food with part of the transfer, I no longer have stress about what my family is going to eat for quite some time. I hence thank GiveDirectly for making this dream possible for me.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
The transfer from GiveDirectly has helped me in a big way. I want to build a store that I can use in storing feeds for my cows and maize that has been harvested. I have hence bought materials for constructing it, that is, iron sheets, building poles, nails and I have put aside some of the money that I will use in paying for the labor. The transfer also enabled me to buy a few items that were missing in my household, that is a table and some utensils. I was also able to buy some food for my family’s consumption. I have a few cows that I am rearing and sometimes there is a dry season in our area and the cows lack something to eat. I hence wanted a store that I will be able to store some feeds that my cows can consume during the dry season. There was some grass that I had gathered but I lacked a place to store them and hence they got spoiled lying on the ground. The reason why I was not in a position to build a store before is that I did not have money. I have a small business of selling groceries to earn a living and the money that I get from it is only enough for me to use in buying food and other necessities. I have also been having an ailment on my foot since the year 2007 and hence I have been spending a lot of money treating it. I especially used a lot when I did not a national medical insurance card, that is NHIF. I was hence forced to sell some of the properties so as to get money for treatment.
 
Enrolled
access_time over 3 years ago
 
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I have been farming for the last 21 years and I usually plant maize for my own consumption and also some for sale. Over the years I have been having a challenge on post-harvest procedures that the maize require because I do not have a store and most of the time my produce goes bad for being rained on and this means a loss for me as a farmer. With these transfers I would like to build a store so that I can comfortably process the maize after harvesting and none of it would go bad.
What is the happiest part of your day?
I usually have a busy day despite the challenge that my knee has posed on my activities. I struggle for the time I can to work on my farm. Eventually at the end of the day I feel it's my happiest moment since I get to have my knee relax as I prepare for the next day.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
In 2016 my knee started developing some abscess and when I visited a doctor I was treated but since then I have not been able to walk properly. This has affected the time I get to spend in my farm since I do not maximize my time of the day. My produce also has gone down due to the same and I can no longer earn money like I used. This has posed to be the biggest hardship in my life.