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?
Before the transfers, I did not have any source of income. I used to rely on small casual work in my area such as garbage collection which would come occasionally. I would not be able to meet most of my needs as a result of that small income. Since I started receiving the transfers, I thought of a better way to ensure I will have constant income even after the transfers are gone. Then I decided on the business. I am glad my life has changed because now I can be able to meet my needs as well as save some part of the transfers for future use.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life?
My new plan for the transfers is to refurbish my business premise buy buying building materials for renovating the premise. Where I used to do the business was brought down since it was built in a road reserve so I had to build my own kiosk. It is not yet to the standard I wanted it to be but I know with the transfers, I will have it well made.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent my transfer on boosting my shop business by adding more stock. This has been my monthly way of spending my transfers and I am glad it has brought a very big change in my business. I have a good stock and the profits too have increased from the profit. The rest of the transfers I have saved. There are financial crisis in life and they come unexpectedly. I want to be well equipped to handle them when I have them through my savings.
12th Payment
Transfer Amount
3997 KES ($39 USD)
access_time almost 5 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I only had one seasonal business selling Ice cream before I was enrolled into this program which did not earn me much making my life quite miserable as I was unable to pay my bills on time or even take care of my daily needs. At the moment, am living a much more decent lifestyle where I am able to properly provide for my needs and even make some savings for future plans. I have so far managed to have one extra business selling electronics which is so far doing quite well, a business I know would not have been in existence were it not for GD.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life?
I have been selling ice cream for close to three years now, but having only one cooler has always made it hard for me to make a good amount during the hot seasons when the business booms which is a limitation for the business. My new plan is to save as much as I can during this cold season to enable me to buy an extra cooler. This is my way of preparing for the hot season ahead when I hope that I will fully benefit from the business as I will be able to make more ice cream.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
A few months ago, I branched into a new business besides the usual ice cream business I usually do By venturing into electronics. I sell them in the same shop where I sell the ice cream and eggs top minimize costs on rent. Being that I still don't have a lot of the items sold in an electronics shop, I have been using most of my transfers to buy the items and even add more stock of the items that sell fast. Just like in the previous months, I used the whole amount I received this month to add more stock and bought new items that were not available in the shop.
8th Payment
Transfer Amount
5000 KES ($48 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
I never had this flow of money before Give Directly started sending me the cash transfers. I used to save some cash before but I am currently able to make more savings than I used to do before. These savings will help me in the future to handle expenses. I know that my kids also stand a chance of witnessing a change in their lives because I will be able to get them the things we do not have in our lives today.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life?
I have a goal of getting a land somewhere in this locality where I can be able to build a new house one day God willing. If for instance, I succeed to build the new house, I can be able to rent it out to tenants at a cost of around Kes 2500 every month, which I think is good business.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I have been training myself to save as much as I can for the unforeseeable future which nobody knows nothing about. I always make sure that each month I save some cash in my account so that I can use it to take care of my family's financial needs in the unforeseeable future.
4th Payment
Transfer Amount
5000 KES ($50 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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Do you have any new goals that you didn't have before receiving the transfer?
My goals now that I have started receiving the money is to buy a piece of land back at home. This is because the price of selling a piece of land there is still low. Buying a plot will help me to relocate from Mathare since I will live on this farm. I am also planning to build some rental houses on this farm which I will be leasing it to people. I will be using the income generated from this to cater my family needs and in my children's education. I am planning to take a loan to accomplish this after my savings from my business will have accumulated.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
I have been a breadwinner for my family for a long time now. Due to this, I usually strain a lot in meeting my family needs since my job earns me little money in a day. I have been able to support my open a saloon business for my wife using my transfers from GiveDirectly Because of this, my wife has been able to support me in paying some of our bills since she now earns some money in a day unlike before when she used to stay at home all day. Having someone to help me cater for my family needs is so far the biggest difference in my daily life since I started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I am planning to open a shop where I will be selling all household items and charging phones for people. I will also be offering M-pesa services at this shop. I settled on this because I am sure that I will get enough customers daily. I will be using the income I will be getting from my business to cater for my family needs and in paying school fees for my children and nephew who is staying with me. I will also save some of the money so that I can use to achieve some of my dreams.
Describe the moment when you started receiving transfers. How did you feel?
It was early in the morning after waking up when I decided to go through my phone and call my friend to see if he could connect me with someone who had some work to be done. It is at this time when I realized that I had some unread messages and after reading their contents, my heart was filled with happiness as one of the messages indicated that I had received some money from GiveDirectly.
Enrolled
access_time almost 6 years ago
What do you plan to do with the cash transfer?
I would like to boost my business by buying another fridge. I deal in selling ice cream and buying a new fridge mean an increase in stock production which brings in more money that will enable me meet my needs and responsibilities with ease. Secondly, I will pay school fees my brother's son with much ease. This will lessen the struggle I have been going through to be able to fulfil this obligation as I only depend on my ice cream business. Lastly, I will also put part of this money into constructing a house for myself either within the city or upcountry in order to improve my living standards.
Describe your biggest worry.
My top concern health crisis because I do not like it when I am sick. Being healthy gives me the strength to be able to move around and find work that enables me fend for myself and family. The fear of being sick comes from the fact that, I cannot do anything for myself and I have to depend on the mercies of others in order to move about or even to survive. This leaves my family helpless because they depend on me to provide their daily needs.
What are your greatest ambitions?
I want to be a successful businessman. I want to lead a better life that is comfortable and of high standards. In order to achieve this, I require to have money which has to come from a business that needs lots of hardwork. I have the aim of setting up a clean business and maintaining its environment in order to help the community stay clean and encourage my fellow youths to keep dealing in clean business so that they can stay safe.
Describe your usual day. How do you spend your time?
I wake up in the morning, take my breakfast then groom myself up and leave for work. I run a shop of selling ice cream. This became my main job after I gave up my conductor hustle in the transport industry. I return home at around 8pm after taking rounds to check up on my friends and catching up on one or two things. I take my supper then retire to bed. In my free time spend it going to my football rehearsals at the deport in Mathare.
