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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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Enrollment
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Transfers
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Completed
Newsfeed > Julius's Profile
Julius's family
Julius
landscapeCountry:
kenya
workOccupation:
Casual labor
faceAge:
37
workCampaign
Kenya Large Transfer
There will be no further updates from this completed recipient.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($462 USD)
access_time almost 2 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I do not have any new goals in life since I want to concentrate on my children's education. Two are in secondary while the other two are still in primary school. I am a livestock broker and I go to the market two days a week while I work on my farm on the other days. Concentrating on my farm will enable me to earn enough money to use in paying school fees for my children and to support my family.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
GiveDirectly officers educated us on everything that we needed to know about the program and the organization. They also assured us that the program was free to all and unconditional to allow us to spend it to achieve our dreams since everyone's needs are different. Because of this, the transfer transformed the entire village as there are new houses everywhere and someone who was here six months ago will not easily recognize our village or a certain homestead when they come back.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
My son has been sleeping in our neighbor's house and I was not comfortable with this arrangement since he sometimes moves from one house to house looking for a place to sleep. With my second transfer, I spent KES 25000 to build a house for him and KES 21000 on a heifer. This will be a reminder of GiveDirectly in our lives and I will be able to enjoy its good deeds for a long time. I am glad that GiveDirectly enabled me to achieve this since I can be using money from the sale of surplus to pay school fees for my four children. Using the remaining amount, I bought some foodstuffs to last my family for some weeks.
 
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($484 USD)
access_time 2 years ago
attach_money
 
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I had just gotten into the bed alongside other family members that night when I heard a message notification coming in. On checking it, I realized that it was the confirmation of the first transfer I had been anticipating. I was so excited and at the back of my mind was all the plans we had been planning to accomplish. I informed my wife who also confirmed the plan to obtain a dairy cow as a priority once the money is collected.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is seeing my children settled in school after clearing all their school fees. This has given me peace of mind to concentrate on other great projects that will in turn help in raising school fees for the coming terms. The livestock that I bought is part of the plan to jump-start the saving plan since I am enjoying surplus production of milk that I can sell as an income source.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
All along with my family of eight, we had been dependent on one dairy cow for milk production both for household use and also some to sell occasionally to settle household bills. Dry seasons were always tough since we had to spend a lot in sourcing milk from the neighborhood but the transfer from GiveDirectly allowed us to obtain another breed at KES25000. I have a plan to alternate their breeding period and ensure that we will never again spend more on milk when one is not lactating. I also managed to pay a total of KES25000 to clear all the arrears together with the current term's fees for my six children - two in secondary school, and four in primary school. With the remaining KES4000, I obtained enough foodstuff for the household that we are still using to date. I am much grateful for this support from GiveDirectly and I hope to still push hard to ensure that I make a lot more changes with the second transfer.
 
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
 
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means that I can pay school fees for my children in secondary schools. I have to pay school fees for two girls, even without a stable income. I am a casual labourer working on peoples farms, earning a wage of about KES 200 per day. I spent part of it and save 100 towards school fees but is never enough. I will spend about KES 20,000 on school fees and buy a dairy cow with the rest of the money. I will buy a dairy cow at about KES 30,000. From this, I will be able to continuously save money from selling milk and have the assurance that I will manage paying school fees.
What is the happiest part of your day?
In the last six months, the happiest days of my life is when the National wide lockdown down to dusk curfew, imposed due to COVID- 19 was lifted. It opened many avenues for me to get casual jobs to sustain my family and to pay school fees for the children. At the height of the pandemic, I could not get anyone offering me jobs because all of them, including, the employed people were at home and would work the farms on their own. Now, they call me because they have resumed and are busy with their various employers.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest challenge that I currently face is the lack of a good source of income. I rely on doing menial jobs to earn a daily wage. We end up spending most of it on foodstuffs for the household, leaving my childrens' education insecure.