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 ($442 USD)
access_time 2 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My new goal is to start a different business of cereal selling. When I received my first transfer, I bought a motorcycle that I have been using to look for income that helps me feed my family and meet other needs of my family as well. The business is not bad although it comes with it's fair share of challenges and it is for this reason that i am thinking about starting a small cereal selling business that will allow me make more income and support my family. My intention is to save up enough money to be able to start this business as soon as possible.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion GiveDirectly did very well by allowing us to choose how to spend the money without giving any conditions or preconditions. This was one thing that I saw and loved about GiveDirectly.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I used Kes 21000 to buy a water tank and used the remaining amount to complete construction of a house we were building. I made a decision to buy a water tank because of the perennial water shortage problems that we had and because we were often forced to travel for very long distances in search of water. I had not been able to buy the water tank before since the casual work that I relied on could give me just enough money to feed my family.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($481 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was a few minutes to seven in the evening and I was at home relaxing after a hard day's work when I realized that I had an unread message. My heart was filled with joy as I read this message that would transform our lives for the better. I immediately rushed to the kitchen where my spouse was making dinner and informed her about it. Due to joy, she started speaking of how she would be keeping the entire house tidy once we achieve our goal of cementing the floors
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
I am living a happy life since I have been able to acquire a motorcycle that is still in good condition and even cement my house. With this, I will be able to concentrate on paying school fees for my children especially now that two of them will be joining secondary school level in the month of April. I would not have been able to achieve all this within a short time if GiveDirectly had not decided to give us financial aid.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I have been using a motorcycle to offer taxi services to people and I knew how lucrative this business is especially when you are the owner. With the money that I had been saving from this business, I had been able to build a more spacious house made of timber walls for my family. When I received my transfer, I spent KES 20000 to improve it by cementing the floors so that cleaning it will be easier. I used the remaining amount to buy a second-hand motorcycle worth KES 65000 from a teacher after topping up with my savings. I decided to buy one that had been used since it was cheaper yet it is still in good condition since he has been using it for transport purposes when going to work. Currently, I am happy that I will be able to pay school fees for my four children in different levels of education on time since I will no longer be spending money on repairs every now and then.
Enrolled
access_time almost 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means access to clean safe water for household use. In our area water source is a challenge especially during low rainfall. We travel over 2 kilometers to get water. This is usually tiresome since the water include livestock. I am lucky that I have a motorcycle which I use to carry it however this means my daily income for the motorcycle taxi job that I normally do will be low and sometimes fueling eats into my profit. So when I get this money I will purchase a 5000-liter water tank.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Where I am currently living, floods when it rains heavily. My house would become wet and soaky thus not safe for living. Since I had matured cypress trees that I had planted I decided to cut them for timbers and used them to build a new house. This has brought joy and happiness into my life since my family is no longer worried about floods when it rains. We can now sleep peacefully during the rainy season.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest challenge is financial constraints. Our area is experiencing a long drought and farming has reduced due to insufficient rainfall thus depending on food vendors. We have dairy cows but their yield is low due to insufficient feeds and water. To get money for purchasing food I do motorcycle taxis. My income is not sufficient too since I spend most of my time looking for water for household use and livestock. On a good day, I earn KES 400 as profit and KES 200 for fueling.
