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?
I was very happy when I received a notification that confirmed the receipt of the first transfer from GiveDirectly. I was at home with my kids since my spouse was out to herd the cattle around 5:00 PM and the elder children were still at school. My spouse went to the shopping center where he collected the transfer after I informed them.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is the clearance of the arrears that were still holding back my children's certs. It had been hard since I had been struggling to meet other children's obligations and could not clear the debt in their schools in time to release the certificates that would have enabled them to secure slots in the colleges.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
Facilitating all my children who are actively schooling had never been easy with the inconsistent sources of income in the household. The first transfer set a base that I hope will be sustainable in the future when the pressing need to meet all the financial obligations arises. I spent KES 20000 on obtaining a bullock that I am currently rearing to sell it out in the future at a profit. I am also glad that I paid KES 25000 to clear the arrears to allow my two children to collect their certificates from their former schools. This has made it easier for them to submit applications to the various colleges that offer the courses of their choice. I spent the remaining amount on buying household foodstuff that we are still using with y family of seven.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
We are a family of seven with five children in school. We are both peasant farmers, solely depending on farm produce to feed our family as well as meet other needs like clothing. We own only one cow, which gives us milk. With sufficient feeds, cows can do well in our area, it can be a good source of income. We have been planning to purchase more cows but due to insufficient finances, it has become hard to achieve this goal. This money has opened a way for us to walk towards achieving this goal. We, therefore, plan to use KES 30,000 to purchase one dairy cow for purposes of milk production both for consumption and if surplus, to sell as an extra income. For the rest of the money, we plan to meet school necessities like fee and uniform for our children.
What is the happiest part of your day?
For about three months now, we have experienced a continuous rainy period. This is a boost to sale scale farmers like us. The grass is greener, meaning the cows can be well fed. Vegetables in our garden are doing well, we no longer buy from the market. This is such a relief for us.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The main challenge is food insecurity. We depend solely on farming mainly maize and beans. Out area is generally a dry area, we experience more dry seasons than rainy seasons. This affects farming and therefore food insecurity.
