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 ($466 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My biggest goal is for me to grow my business, with this we will be assured that the school fees needs of our children would be catered for, I believe that through hard work and financial discipline I will be able to achieve the goal.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
GiveDirectly staffs are professional in their line of duty, they are respectful and patient, On top of that, they were not biased in their work. Thus we are grateful for the support that lifted our living standards amazingly.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I am a farmer and a businesswoman in the village, blessed with three children, I had started constructing a house in the village before, but I was unable to do the finishing due to financial constraints. Upon receiving my transfer I used 30,000 in completing the house so has to have a decent place to call home. I then stocked up my business with a sum of KES 10,000, lastly, I bought foodstuffs with the remaining amount, I am so grateful for the milestone that I have achieved with the transfer that I received from GiveDirectly
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($496 USD)
access_time 3 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
The moment I received the transfer I felt so happy. I remember vividly like yesterday that it was around 10 am. I had taken my cows to the field. When I came back home as I was checking my phone I got a message indicating that I have received KES 55,000 from GiveDirectly. I felt so happy because I have never received such amount of money before. I inform my family members and they were so happy. I knew I would be able to buy a heifer and goats. This has been always my wish. I went to withdrew the money and planned on how to spend time with my family.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that I have purchased a heifer. This will help me to cut the daily cost of buying milk. I depend on causal jobs in the village and the amount of money that I get through this jobs is so small and cannot meet all the basic household items. My spousd also run a small relatail shop and the profit that he gets is for other family needs. We had no extra money to save so that we could buy a dairy cow. We had always wished to purchase but we didn't had the money. When I received the transfer from GiveDirectly I felt so happy because I knew I would be able to buy a dairy cow. Currently we have hope and we believed that this daily cost of buying milk will be stopped. I have now devoted much of my time in farming and looking after my dairy cow. I am so happy and excited about this project. GiveDirectly has changed our living standards and given us hope to work much better.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent KES 20,000 to purchase a heifer. I will get enough milk when it reproduce in the next few months. This will help me to cut the daily cost of buying milk. I purchased four goats. This is an investment because goats reduce faster and it helps whenever there is an emergency at home. The rest of the money I bought food and clothes for my children. I am so happy because GiveDirectly has changed our living standards.
Enrolled
access_time over 3 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means that I can increase my sheep from 5 that I have to 15 and buy a dairy cow to enhance my income. If I get this transfer,I will majorly invest in sheep, spending about $300 because they are hardy and can survive well here, where other livestock would do very poorly. Crops fail all the time because we receive very little rainfall.As a result, we have to buy all the foodstuffs for the household.I will also spend part of the money in boosting my husband's shop business. The business brings us about $3 a day, which is not enough as we spent about $5 on household items. With increased income from the business and sheep keeping, I will be able to cater for my family.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is in the morning. I always wake up looking forward to meeting my daily needs through farming. Every morning, it makes me happy to have so much energy and time to fend for the family.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship in my life is food insecurity. Currently, I rely on subsistence farming but food crops have always been failing due to a bad weather here. My husband provides for us from his small business but he also has a huge burden, paying school fees. His business brings in about $3 per day. Compared to my household's expenditure of approximately $5 a day, we stay hungry most of the days.
