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.
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2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($493 USD)
access_time over 3 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
Having a big family and having to buy milk is like an addition of poverty to poverty especially when one does not have a source of income. With my first and second transfers, I was able to start a poultry project and purchase a dairy cow. With my small income from the poultry project, I am able to meet our daily needs with ease unlike before. Also, I no longer worry of where to get money to use in buying milk as I now have. All these would not have been possible had I not received the transfers.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, GiveDirectly does well by giving out unconditional cash to everyone as one gets to decide how to spend the cash to better his/her life and I do not see anything that they do not do well.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent part of the money I received to pay school feel for my children. I settled on this so that my two children in secondary school would not be sent back home for school fees as I had no other money to use. Buying milk has been my family's daily routine. This is costly and sometimes we're forced to take tea without milk. The more vulnerable ones were my children who are still young who would at times beg me to buy for them milk to drink but it was always not possible and I had started worrying about their health as they were not getting enough proteins. Because of this, my transfer came in handy as I spent the remaining amount to buy a dairy cow after topping up some amount. I am now glad as we have milk for our consumption and for sale.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($500 USD)
access_time almost 4 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I was taking lunch holding my phone and a message popped up. I was very excited to learn it was the transfer that we had been promised by GiveDirectly. My husband who was there with me was also very excited and we thanked God and GiveDirectly.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
In January it is usually dry here and food becomes a problem. We therefore bought food to be able to sustain us during this period. As long as there is food at home, a family is happy. That is how happy we are right now because of how GiveDirectly has been a blessing to us.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I paid school fees for my two children who are in secondary school and bought them school uniform. I also bought a young heifer and 10 chicken.
Enrolled
access_time 4 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money mean an improved business that we are running. We have always been desiring to increase our business but due to lack of finances, we have been unable to do so. We are running a retail shop and a small hotel in the nearby centre and we are planning to improve it more by adding stock and thus increasing the size of our customers.
What is the happiest part of your day?
My morning hours entails working in our one acre of land where we have grown maize, kales, sweet potatoes and onions. I use my afternoon looking after our 2 cows and doing household chores. Evening is the only time I have to rest and relax after the long day's work making it the happiest part of my day.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship we have faced in life is prolonged drought in our region. This has led to low crop production and lack of water for domestic use (for home consumption and cattle). Even though we have tapped water from the county government, it is expensive to pay for it and not reliable since at times we don't get it. We are planning to use Ksh 30,000 to buy more pipes and water tanks to assist us in irrigating our one acre of land and use the rest in equipping our business.
