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 biggest difference in your daily life.
This money has really helped me a lot in sorting out school fees for my three daughters. I paid KES 40000 to clear their school fees. As a parent, my expectation has always been to educate my children by giving them the best education which will make them be self-reliant in the future. Raising the tuition fees for their education was hectic and I struggled a lot because I do not have a stable source of income. I am grateful to GiveDirectly for their financial support since I cleared the fee arrears. This has given me enough time to source for more money for the next semesters. To me, this is the biggest difference in my daily life as at now.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I remember the night before the transfer was sent, I almost had an argument with my daughters who were to report to college for their new semester yet I didn't have enough money to send them back to school. I was glad to wake up to the news that GiveDirectly had sent the first transfer. When I checked on my phone, they had indeed sent the amount they had promised us. I called my family and happily rejoiced and thanked GiveDirectly for fulfilling their promise. It was a blessing that came at the right moment.
What did you spend your first transfer on?
I spent KES 40000 to clear fee arrears for my children. One of my kids is in high school and two are in college. The transfer came on time because they were required to clear the arrears before they could do their final exams. I am happy that through this transfer, I paid for them to ensure they don't fail to do their end year exams. They are now comfortably and less distracted which gives me a lot of peace. I spent the remaining amount on purchasing a few building materials. I bought 8 pieces of iron sheets and some building poles with an intention to add one room for my growing sons.
Enrolled
access_time over 5 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
My desire is to ensure my children are well educated and in a position to help themselves financially. With this in mind, I plan to spend most of my transfers in paying college fees for my daughter who is specializing in Early Childhood Education and fees for my other daughter in secondary school. With the remaining part, I will set up a shop within my neighborhood because there is none as at now. Having worked in a shop previously for a year, am fully equipped with the skills required to succeed in this business. This will assist me in catering for other needs in the family such as food and water.
What is the happiest part of your day?
My day is mostly spent in the hot sun herding cattle, moving from one place to another in search of grass and water. By end of day, am usually very exhausted hence I look forward to the night when I get some good sleep making it the happiest part of my day.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Lack of financial resources to educate my children is my biggest hardship. After losing all my livestock in the 2016/2017 drought, I now herd people's cattle for a living which does not pay enough to cater for our needs. My wife was forced to move elsewhere to get a job just so we could make ends meet. Still, our income combined cannot even buy sufficient food for a week.
