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.
How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I work as a conductor in Mtwapa, and I have hopes of investing in goats. To reach this goal, I set aside part of my transfers to buy goats, although not consistently every month. Currently, I own four goats, and my plan is to grow their numbers through breeding while also purchasing more. Ultimately, I aim to trade these goats for cows. My goal is to buy both ploughing bulls and a dairy cow. The bulls will be essential for preparing my land for agricultural activities like cultivation, and I also plan to rent them out to others for a fee. This will allow me to generate income for my family. The money earned from renting the cows will gradually accumulate, making it easier for me to pay my children’s school fees and meet other basic needs. I’m truly grateful to GiveDirectly for their financial support, as it has given me hope for a better future.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I have two children in school, and since they had outstanding fee balances, I decided to spend $44 to clear their fees. This was to ensure they wouldn’t be sent home due to the balances, allowing them to stay in class with their peers and not lose valuable time. I also purchased a goat for $22 as a step toward financial security. In addition, I plan to invest in more goats because they multiply quickly, and I can sell them to cover my children’s school fees once the transfers come to an end. I also spent $28 on food for the family, as we had none in the house. Lastly, I used the remaining $8 to buy two chickens for my poultry project. This project will also provide financial support in case of emergencies, as we can sell them to meet our family's needs.
22nd Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($27 USD)
access_time 3 months ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I am employed as a conductor in Mtwapa and I have hopes when it comes to investing in goats. At present, I own three goats and my intention is for their numbers to increase through breeding. My ultimate goal is to eventually exchange these goats for cows, which will play a crucial role in preparing my land for agricultural activities such as crop planting. I aim to generate income by renting out the cows. The income generated from renting the cows will gradually be accumulate, enabling me to purchase a piece of land. The size of the land I acquire will depend on the amount of income I am able to accumulate over time. Thanks to GiveDirectly, for the support and for making my family and I have hope that our lives will be better in the future.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
Last month marked a significant milestone as I successfully finished constructing my one-room house, made possible by the consistent support from GiveDirectly. Utilizing the transfers each month, I purchased metal sheets totaling $66, that aid in completing my home. This achievement will always be a testament to the impact of GiveDirectly in my life. With the remaining $34, I made a strategic investment by purchasing another goat, adding to my current three. My aim is for these goats to multiply, paving the way for future exchanges into cows. These cows will play a major role in preparing my land for agricultural use, which I plan to lease out for additional income. Thanks to GiveDirectly for the support I normally receive each month.
18th Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($24 USD)
access_time 8 months ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I currently reside in a one-room house made of mud. However, I have a dream of constructing a stone house. My aspiration is to provide my family with a larger home, comprising at least two rooms. As my children are growing, I desire for them to have ample space and privacy. Presently, I work as a conductor, shuttling between Mtwapa and Mombasa Town. My plan is to diligently save from my work earnings and also allocate funds from my transfers towards realizing this dream.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I am a father of three; with two children currently attending school. Upon receiving my transfers, I immediately allocated $20 towards paying their school fees, ensuring their education continues uninterrupted. Another $10 was used to purchase books and pens, bringing joy to their eager hearts. With the remaining $4, I secured food for my family, ensuring our basic needs are met. It brings me great satisfaction to provide for my children's education and well-being.
14th Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($23 USD)
access_time 11 months ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I plan to start building a new house for my growing family. With three children now, our current one-room structure feels cramped. I aim to build a two-room house, allowing the children to have their own space while my wife and I occupy the other. Additionally, I hope to acquire two bulls to assist with plowing activities on my farm. Currently, I have to hire an ox plow, which can be expensive. To achieve this, I'm counting on the growth of my sheep herd, to exchange them for bulls in the next few years. It would also be great if I could channel some of the cash transfers that could contribute to this aspiration.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
With the recent onset of the short rains, signaling the start of farming season, I decided to leave my job as a conductor in town and return to the village to focus on farming. I used $24 to have one acre of my land plowed for planting and spent $10 on pesticides to treat the maize seeds. I'm pleased to see the maize crops growing well. In the prior two transfers, I spent the entire $68 to buy two sheep. Since receiving the cash transfers, I've been channeling most of it into buying sheep, and my herd has now grown to eight. Sheep are preferable for me because they are easy to maintain in terms of grazing. Owning livestock was a dream I had for a long time, and the cash transfers made it possible. I am truly grateful to GiveDirectly, and I feel more confident that the financial future of my three children and wife is more secure now.
10th Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($25 USD)
access_time over 1 year ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My main goal is to own a better house. My family currently lives in a small house and with the growing population, it had become pretty hard to operate. I, therefore, want to construct a bigger house that would have enough space, and to achieve this, I plan to continue buying livestock to add to the ones that I already have and later sell them in order to get the money that would help me in bringing up the house.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
We have always experienced prolonged drought, but for the previous months, we had been lucky to be blessed with lots of rain and I therefore decided to take advantage of the situation by engaging in farming so that whenever drought strikes again, we shall be having some food in stock. Upon receiving my transfers, I decided to spend the whole amount that I received of $34.70 which I managed to pay out to those who I hired. The crops are doing great and am now happy that my family would not go hungry on most days as we did before.
6th Payment
Transfer Amount
3470 KES ($27 USD)
access_time over 1 year ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I began building a new house last year since the current one is old and relatively small. Unfortunately, I lost my job last year, bringing to a halt my building project since I did not have constant cash flow. Therefore, as I continue to receive my transfer, I have a goal of completing to build it before this year ends. I hope that once I achieve that goal, my family will have a decent house. The current one is smaller, old, and leaky during rainy seasons.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I have been running a poultry farm as one of my sources of livelihood. Unfortunately, I lost several domestic fowls owing to the outbreak of some diseases due to prolonged drought. To boost my farm, I spent $10 on my most recent transfer on three domestic fowls. I long to venture into raising layers to hence I will be able to sell eggs to increase my family income. Secondly, since I have a son, Jumaa is in grade two, I spent $10 on paying his school fees. The remainder of the transfer, $ 14 helped me to acquire food for my family of five members; my three children, my family, and myself.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
3050 KES
access_time almost 2 years ago
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In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
I appreciate that the company is sending money to our phones directly. This is a clever move that guarantees the money reaches the intended recipient. The transfer's proceeds have also been essential in enabling me to provide for my family's needs, which I was previously unable to do due to the meager wages I received from my job. I beseech the organization to take more precautions to prevent elderly people from losing their money to unwary family members.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
The primary provider for my family is me (wife and two children). I make a living by working as a public transportation tout. My wife is a stay-at-home mother who is unemployed. My meager earnings from my job barely cover the cost of one meal per day. I have therefore found it difficult to provide for all of my family's needs. As a result, when I got my transfer, I spent $8 on my two kids' unpaid school fees. They were sent home by their teacher to make up the remaining arrears, and they didn't return to school for more than two weeks. They are back in school and able to focus on their studies, which I am happy about. Along with paying back overdue school fees, I also bought the family $10 worth of food. Since they ran out of food from the previous stock, purchasing food saved them from going hungry. I gave my wife the remaining $12 so she could travel back and forth in search of her national identification card. She needs the identity card for both her personal security and to access essential government services.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
1200 KES
access_time almost 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I was on my way to my daily hustles as a conductor when I heard a phone vibration.I checked and it was a confirmation message of $ 12 from GiveDirectly. My mother was the first person I break the good news too then finally to my husband. They felt very happy with the good news. I have been having a goal to complete the construction of an extra room that I started a few years ago. We have been living in a single room which provided no privacy as my elder son is currently 5 years, old enough to sense when something isn't right. For this reason, I am looking forward to completing the building process in the next two months. I am only left with roofing which I need 3 iron sheets and I am planning to use my next transfer of $ 30 to buy the iron sheet. I am also looking forward to starting goats and chicken rearing to serve as future evidence for GiveDirectly's support to my children. This is because goats and chickens can easily multiply within a very short time and hence make more profits which will hopefully give support in terms of money to complete the building process
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
My life is different than how it would have been if I never received the transfer in that I I bought food for the family. I was happy to receive the transfer which has in turn improved the living standard of the family. Being given the freedom to choose what to spend on the transfer and deciding to buy food for the family was the greatest difference in my life. Furthermore, I am also planning to completing the building which remained a challenge due to too many family demands which I had to fulfill first before anything else. I wouldn't building over food house construction as a father of young children in as much as the house was a pressing need as well. I am also planning to buy goats and chicken for rearing to serve as future evidence for GiveDirectly's support to my children. This is because goats and chickens can easily multiply within a very short time and hence make more profits which will hopefully
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I couldn't bare seeing my younger son cry due to hunger, something that made me relocate to a new town, Shanzi in search of a job. I am a father of 3 and I currently work as a matatu conductor. I secured the job a few days ago after I left the village. Before, I used to do a business selling charcoal which collapsed due to low demand. My greatest struggle was feeding the family, therefore, from my last transfer of $ 12, I bought food for the family. I sent my wife the amount back home to budget food for the family. Despite this being my first transfer, I can confess that my younger no longer cries due to hunger as they got something to eat on a daily basis and this made the family quite happy especially my wife as she is assured of getting something monthly. I can afford to lend money to others as well, something that I wouldn't do before receiving the transfer, I just lend my aunt $ 5 which she refunded the following day as she promised.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I desire to renovate my house, re-plaster it, and finish up one side of it. I run out of money while I was constructing it and thankfully I will be able to finish what I started. Every month I will utilize 2000 KES for the renovations and the 1000 KES I will spend on food and school for my son in grade one.
Once I am done with the renovations I will invest in livestock, at the end of the program I would be so proud if I will have acquired about 50 goats ( with 2000 KES every month this is more than possible)
What is the happiest part of your day?
On the first of this year, we had a small celebration at home, we slaughtered a hen and dinned together as a family. This happens once a year and I always look forward to it. It brings us close as a family and we get to catch up with even distant relatives.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The past four seasons have been harsh since we have not had any harvests. Food has been scarce and we have been compelled to purchase from shops. The prices have also increased making it even harder to afford. To get by, we consume two meals a day, porridge in the morning and cornmeal mush (ugali) for dinner. Sadly I have to watch my children skip lunch and it is difficult for them to understand why.