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.
I have a decent house, which I was not able to build without GiveDirectly money. I was living in a leaking, grass thatched house, and sometimes when it rained in the middle of the night, my children could wakeup and we could gather in a corner until rain could stop then they could resume the sleep. We could sometimes miss meals in the house, unlike now, that we can afford a complete meal which is a well balanced one.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
When I received my money, I was very happy. I took my time to pray and thanked God for that provision. I used to be mocked and humiliated because I was too poor to contribute towards any development in the society. I could not be listen to when it came to community decision making process, as a result of the level of my poverty. I knew that by receiving this money, I my life could change from worst to at least a better one.
What did you spend your first transfer on?
I spent my first transfer on buying building materials which I used to build a new house. I used to live in a grass thatched house which was leaking when it rained. This resulted to expiratory infections like pneumoniae that always affect my children and finally led to overspending of much money for treatment. I also bought food stuff to improve family nutrition and my children are now living a malnutrition free life.
Enrolled
access_time over 5 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
This money means that I will be able to build a new house. Building a new house is of great priority because my mother was a second wife and my step mother refused the Givedirectly program and sent us away from her home, that is why I relocated to this little shelter which I must use the cash transfer to build a new house. I had to send my wife back to her parents because the weather condition in this current house would affect the health of our child. I will set aside part of the transfer to buy some cows that shall eventually produce milk for the family.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is during the morning because I wake up to work with the hope to raise money to finish the work on my shelter so that my wife would join me. Stay alone in the cold nights after my wife left to be with her parents is so cold and lonely.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship I am going through currently is the poor weather condition I am enduring after my step mother used her cultural status as first wife to my father to evict us from her home. I had to leave my house and settle for this shelter with my wife leaving to go and stay with her parents for fear of our little childs health being subjected to the current weather condition prompted by the incident.
