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.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was around 6 pm while relaxing at home with my kids. That's when I heard a message alert on my phone, on checking my helper confirmed that I had received KES 55,000 from GiveDirectly. We were very happy at the arrival of the transfers and my helper withdrew the next day.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life since I received the transfers is the availability of adequate food for my family. As a result, we have grown healthier and happier.
I am also happy with the new kitchen I build using the transfers. This is because I could not afford to build one earlier even in my wildest dreams but GiveDirectly made it possible.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I am a mother of four sons and several grandchildren. Before GiveDirectly came, I had an old, tiny, and worn-out grass-thatched kitchen with leaking roofs and falling mud walls. Therefore when I received my transfers I spent KES 20,000 on building a modern and spacious 12 Iron roofed kitchen.
Secondly, I spent KES 7,000 on the purchase of two maize bags. This will help sustain my family longer because at my age I no longer have the strength to do heavy work.
Thirdly, I spent KES 4,000 on the latest clothing fashion both for me and my husband. These have made us look neater than before when we were only old second-hand clothes.
In addition, I used KES 13,000 on two modern beds, two high-density mattresses, and four high-quality blankets. As a result, I and my husband now sleep more comfortably than before.
Lastly, I spent KES 8,000 on a heifer because when it reproduces it will be a source of milk for my family.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I am 82 years old and my economic activeness is slowly degrading. I now get involved in less intensive tasks like small-scale poultry farming. I depend on selling eggs from my chicken to fend for my granddaughter and my 85-year-old husband. I usually get around KES 100 per day which is inadequate to comfortably sustain us. Receiving this money means that I will expand my poultry farming and hire a casual laborer to assist me in doing the related tasks. I will set aside KES 40000 to do this and spend the remaining amount on house repair and buying food for my family.
What is the happiest part of your day?
For the past four months, this area I reside has been experiencing lots of rainfall. This has provided me with an opportunity to grow short-term crops like beans. They are growing well and I am hopeful of harvesting them in a week or so.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest challenge I am currently facing is getting a standard eating routine I.e three meals per day. Being very old, I am slowly becoming economically inactive and only depend on proceeds from my poultry farming. The KES 100 I get from the sales is hardly enough to sustain us and so we have to skip lunch so that we can survive. At my current age, I am supposed to be eating healthily but this is not the case.
