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 ($493 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 how t would have been because the financial help has empowered me and I am now proud of daily cows and a pair of oxen. I have been aspiring to at least one cow but this was so difficult because they were very expensive considering my income from the charcoal business, which I couldn't achieve. As a farmer, I feel there is great relief because I will no longer have to spend money on hiring other people's oxen instead I will be using my own. Also, I will be hiring them to my neighbors at a fee and generate an income that will help me in settling my household expenses. Also with the dairy cow, the bigger amount of the produced liter will be for commercial purposes. This will now be an additional income to me. Therefore I am positive I will no longer strain in meeting the family's needs.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, GoveDirectky does well in such a way that all the people in my village were enrolled without discriminating against anyone in terms of gender or even tribe. Also, everyone was enrolled freely whit being asked for a bribe or anything in return. I do mt see anything GD failed us.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent part of my first transfer on buying an ox at KES 23000 purposely for my farming activities. Previously I had bought one with the previous cash transfer and it's now a full pair ready to work. Also since I have been sleeping on the traditional beds for all the years, I decided to buy a new wooden bed and mattress. I used to complain a lot, especially about my spinal cord. With the remaining amount of money, I bought foodstuffs for my family since it's now a dry season.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($500 USD)
access_time over 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I received a message on my phone when I was taking a rest at lunch hour. When I checked the contents of the message, I had received my first transfer from GiveDirectly. I was overjoyed and celebrated with my family for this fortune.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
Owning the cows in my homestead is the biggest difference in my daily life. To me these are the only assets I can boast of owning. I had none of the livestock since I could not afford them. Selling milk is a good business and I am expecting to benefit financially from the milk that these cows will be producing. Again, as they reproduce, the offspring can be a good source of income also since I can readily sell in case of a financial hardship.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent KES 40000 of my first transfer on buying two cows. I chose to buy these cows since these are valuable living assets that I can rely on to meet future financial needs. They will reproduce and have many of them and I can sell the offspring to generate an income. I already had some cows in my homestead and selling milk is my source of income. Thus this is an addition to my already existing cowshed. I will sell more milk thus earning an increased income. I spent the remaining amount on buying a new bed and a mattress to replace the old beddings that I was using.
Enrolled
access_time over 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Food security is basically what receiving this money means to me. At the moment, I depend on subsistence farming but since I use traditional methods of farming like the use of hoe, my produce is usually low and they sustain me for only 4 months before I supplement by buying maize flour from the shop. Upscaling this farming method will help me to have a bigger portion of land that I will till it within a short period. To achieve this, I intend to buy oxen and an ox plough for $380. On the other hand, I also plan to buy a bed and a mattress to replace the ones that I currently own and I will spend $150 to have this done. This will help me to enjoy my nights since as of now, I use a roped bed with rugged sacks.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Being a land preparation season, I always spend my morning hours at my farm and part of my afternoon hours in the bush doing the charcoal burning. I usually get ample time to rest in the evening when I retire to bed, and this is the happiest part of my day.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Food insecurity is the biggest hardship that I have ever faced in my life. Currently, I depend on subsistence farming but due to the use of traditional methods of farming, my produce is always low and it only sustains me for 4 months. This has forced me to engage in odd jobs like charcoal burning, a venture that is so tiresome and energy draining.
