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 moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
Happiness was profound when we first received the transfer from GiveDirectly. All hopes to rise again and see ourselves progressing were rejuvenated. This wasn't happening to us alone but we could see how fast things started to change in our neighborhood. We get down to laying strategies on how best we could spend the money and this had to involve every member of the household to ensure the best decision was met. To date we are seeing great changes and happiness keeps increasing now that we are no longer the way we were.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is the construction of a new house. With the current rainy season I am among the lucky few to have a good roof above our heads. The initial hut we had was becoming smaller and smaller every other time especially when we had visitors. Space was not only the problem but also the leaking roof. We are glad that the transfer we received enabled us to construct a bigger and better house which we are now living in.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
Upon receiving the transfer fro GiveDirectly, I had a lot in mind lined up and all needed to bed done with the amount I received. I had to prioritize the construction of a new house after demolishing the old one since it was already leaking on the roof. Being a rainy season, nothing better would have happened to my family members that a good roof above their heads. I bought iron sheets, woods, nails, and also paid a constructor who worked on the construction within a very short period of time. Currently we are feeling good, living in a pacious house with improved hygine since we no longer experience muddy floors due to the leaking water as we used to experience before.
Apart from the good house which we have constructed, we also spent a better part of the transfer on buying foodstuff. We are now fully equiped with everything we needed and all we can do now is to work hard in our farms to replenish the stores.
Enrolled
access_time almost 5 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
For a long time I have lived in a grass thatched roof of a house. While the grass roof has depleted and leaking, it's design cannot enable me collect clean rain water. Receiving this money will see me put up a corrugated iron roof house worth about $350 in the coming month so that I can get clean rain water for drinking.
What is the happiest part of your day?
My husband does motorcycle taxi for a living. My children and I look forward to his coming home from work every evening with food especially meat and occasionally, sweets for the children. This is the happiest part of my day.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Access to clean and safe water for drinking is a great challenge in my community. We are forced to compete with domestic animals for the same source of water in stagnant water pans which in any case, pose serious health hazards to the community especially children. My worry is that my children may contract water borne relates illnesses yet I do not have a source of income to cushon me against such health uncertainties. This makes life hard.
