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.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that I managed to buy goats which I wouldn't have acquired if I was to purchase them at my own cost. Having this livestock to me is the biggest achievement because I know they will be reproducing and have many of them. Besides, these are assets to me that I can lean on for future financial needs like selling the offsprings to educate my grandsons to higher levels of education. I will not struggle to raise money towards advancing their studies.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I was woken up by a message on my phone early that morning. When I checked the contents of the message, I realised it was an Mpesa notification, informing me that I had received KES 55000 from GiveDirectly. I couldn't afford to sleep anymore, as I began to plan on how I would spend this money to the last coin to change my living standard, which had been my greatest desire.
What did you spend your first transfer on?
I am living with my grandsons whom I take care of their education since they do not have any other person to depend on for their school fees and also in providing their basic needs. This has been a challenge to me because I do not have any source of income. Thus receiving this money from GiveDirectly was a great relief to me, because I cleared their school fees in advance for them to comfortably continue with their studies and also did the shopping for them. In addition to this, I also purchased ten goats at KES 26000 which I am currently rearing in my homestead. I know these goats will reproduce and increase in number. This is a saving for the future of my grandson's education since I can sell these goats in the near future and raise more money for their fees. I spent the remaining amount to pay for household basic needs such as foodstuffs and paying for some household expenses.
Enrolled
access_time over 4 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
In this 21st century, education is the key for every child. Currently, my last born is in form 3 and my desire has been to educate him to the university level so that he may secure a good job in the future. This ambition has been faced with a lot of challenges because most of the time my son is always sent out of school due to lack of fee. Receiving this money means quality education for my child as I am planning to spend $ 60 in clearing the third term fee arrears. I will use the remaining amount to purchase 15 goats at 30 dollars each, this will be a longterm investment that will help me in advancing his studies.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Evening is the happiest part of my day because I normally spend this portion of the day relaxing from my day's toil and chatting with my co-wife. Unlike the morning and afternoon when I am busy in the farm digging and preparing charcoal for sell respectively.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Being a widow and the only hope for my family of 3, providing for the basic necessities has been the biggest challenge in my life. Charcoal burning is what I have been relying on since the loss of my husband 10 years ago. Considering the nature of this job being tiresome, strenuous and low paying, I am still forced to do it because putting food on the table means doing this activity. Seeing my child missing classes due to lack of school fees has made me spending sleepless night something that has robbed away my joy. Hence lack of financial resources has been my biggest hardship in life.
