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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3rd Payment
Transfer Amount
50000 KES ($495 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
Living in a big city such as Nairobi it comes with a lot of challenges mainly when one has a business, I am saying this because I had a business and one morning my business premise was demolished. I didn't know where to start since I was rendered jobs. Then after idling around I opted to secure security job in the nearby club where I was employed as a bouncer and the income I got from it was meagre hence providing for my family was a challenge. I spent my recent transfer to buy a motorcycle purposely for motorcycle taxi business hence I am able to supplement my income and with the profits to sustain my family with ease. I have created employment opportunity since I have hired someone who rides it for me on a commision.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life?
I have no new goal but rather I am investing my time and effort to expand my motorcycle taxi business to meet my family's needs with ease when the income shall have doubled for instance.
How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
Currently, my life is different in that I am self- empowered since I have a business that I had started with GiveDirectly's transfer hence it keeps me busy and I no longer get lured to engage in criminal gangs unlike before when at times I would be rendered jobless and idle around Mathare slums.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
36800 KES ($368 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent the KES 20,000 to start a clothe selling business.KES 2000 to pay rent and KES 10,000 to pay school fees for my children in secondary school. I then spent the remaining KES 4800 went towards buying food items for my household.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life?
I have a goal of investing heavily in agriculture. I have always heard that farming pays but my financial situation has not allowed me to practice the same. When I received the transfers, I realized that I have enough capital to do the same. So far I have started working towards the same. I have sought the land disputes and as soon as I get the 3rd transfers I am going to practice large scale farming of vegetables.
How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My is life is quite different in a positive way. I am living a better life now. Using the transfer to start second-hand clothes business was a great decision for me. I now have a regular and reliable source of income. Earlier on before receiving the transfer I used to work as a security guard and earned KES 5000 monthly. This income was barely enough for my family's needs. As of now my income from the business is much higher, I am able to meet my family's needs well and even have extra to save. At the moment also I am dreaming bigger than I used to. I see life in a more positive perspective unlike before when life was full of hopelessness and negativity.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
20000 KES ($194 USD)
access_time almost 6 years ago
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Describe the moment when you started receiving transfers. How did you feel?
I did not actually believe that the money had been sent already, especially considering it was so early in the morning. For a moment, I thought it was a message from one of those conmen who usually send such messages, so I had to check my M-pesa balance to confirm if it was really true, and for sure it was. I was really pleased and immediately shared the great news with my wife.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I am planning to start a second-hand clothes business next year using the second transfer, so I used part of the money I received to put up a structure where I will be selling the clothes. I also spent some of the money on foodstuff and other household requirements because for several days before I received the money, my family had not had a decent meal and it was only fair that this was immediately taken care of. I saved the rest of the money for any emergencies and Christmas celabration purposes.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
This money has given me the hope of starting a lasting business which will generate a stable income to ensure my family's needs are always catered for. Before I received the money, we could go without meals or eat just once a day due to lack of money, but ever since I received the money, I am happy to say that we have always had three square meals every day,all thanks to GD's generosity.
Do you have any new goals that you didn't have before receiving the transfer?
My biggest plan right now is to use the next transfer to start a second-hand cloth business in order to have a stable source of income and stop relying on casual jobs which are usually very unreliable and hard to find. I am also planning to clear my children's school fees for the whole of next year when I receive the third transfer so that they are no longer sent out of school all the time like was the case this year
Enrolled
access_time almost 6 years ago
Describe your biggest worry.
My top concern is not having a job, everyday i wake up and go out to look for work and at times ifind nothing to do,this stresses me up, adding to the fact that i have a family and children that depend on me to provide and meet their daily needs,who are unaware of the hustles that i go through everyday.
Describe your usual day. How do you spend your time?
I wake up in the morning and i go looking for a source of income to get money to feed my family,i later go for body building execrises since i mostly get jobs of being a bouncer or a security gaurd,later in the day i go to the mosque and pray and in the evening i go back home and catch up with my friends.
What are your greatest ambitions?
I have always have always desired a good life, to live well. I am an orphan and was raised in a childrens home,by name Good Samaritan.I would like my children to have a good life and lack nothing in life and also to be able to support my younger siblings since i am the first born
What do you plan to do with the cash transfer?
I prioritized investing in a new business of selling shoes,since its one of the businesses i have always thought of having. I want to sell products that i will get a market for and since men love shoes i will focus on sellings mens shoes.
Secondly i can start a poultry farm am keep chicks,rare them and later sell the eggs and the chickens. Improving my living standards will be another priority, there are things i have longed to have but i never had the money to buy them ,thus this money will help me improve my housing condition and buy more items at home.