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
55000 KES ($454 USD)
access_time 2 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
The new goal that I have now is to save money from the casual jobs that I usually do. I wish to purchase a dairy cow. I always buy milk daily which is costly for me. Purchasing a dairy cow will enable me to cut this cost and save the money for other basic household needs.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
The majority of the people in our village were able to build decent and spacious houses. This is because most of us lived in grass thatched houses. Besides that, most were able to provide all the basic needs of the family. I do not find anything that GiveDirectly did not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent $380 on purchasing building materials and building a better and more spacious house for my family. This is because we used to live in a small grass-thatched house that could not host all my family comfortably. The house was so old and I was worried that it could fall on us. I had always wished to build a better house but I did not have the money to purchase the construction materials. I rely on casual jobs in the village and the amount of money that I get is so small and it was on meant for the basic household needs of the family. There was no extra money to build a house. Currently, we have a decent house and we are living well with my family. We no longer get worried especially during the rainy seasons. The remaining amount of money was spent on food, clothes and other household items that we were missing at home. I am so grateful because GiveDirectly has changed our living standards.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($471 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
7 am. I was taking my breakfast.
When I heard a ringtone message from GiveDirectly
When I check it out I could not believe
I have never received such amount
I knew I would be able to build a decent kitchen house
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
Build a kitchen house. Grass thatched house leaking from inside
I have build a decent kitchen house. Timber
Casual jobs in the village and small scale farming
It was so had during the rainy season.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
35k timber house.. Grass thatched house. Kitchen
It was leaking from house
8k.Two children in secondary school. Studying well
Food and household items
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
First, I am happy and grateful to God for this help. We have been struggling to educate our two school-going children by paying school fees in kind since we are subsistence farmers. Hence, receipt of this grant suggests that it shall be relatively easier for us to educate our children. We will invest KES 30000 of the transfer by acquiring another dairy cow because we have one. This means that we shall have more milk to be used in paying school fees (I usually deliver fresh milk to a local secondary school where my children are studying). Besides, I will use some of the remaining amounts on paying the next term's fees (KES 11000) and clearing arrears of KES 5000.
What is the happiest part of your day?
This term, my two school-going children have enjoyed ample study time because I managed to pay most of the required fees on time. They were not sent home to collect school fees unlike before because our cow was lactating and we had milk to deliver to their school. This has been the main source of joy in our family over the last couple of months.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
We reside and practice farming on 0.5 acres of land. So, the biggest challenge to us is the limited space (land) because it hinders us from expanding our farming activities. To be precise, we have been forced to rear only one cow and do crop farming in 0.2 acres of our land. As a result, we usually realize little produce from our farm, something that leads to food shortage and a challenge in educating our children. Overall, I feel pressurized as a parent in terms of fending for my family and educating my children.
