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.
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2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($528 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?
GiveDirectly has left a lasting impact in my life because it has enabled to acquire livestock and start a proper poultry-keeping business. It has given me a great boost to income-generating activities. The money that I get from the project at the moment is about KES 7000 from eggs and KES 100 from milk per week. This has helped me in a big way unlike before when I was relying on only om menial jobs to get little for consumption.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, GiveDirectly came to teach the villagers with humility, skillfully evading every possible conflict in the village. The officers were very understanding and very intelligent. They responded to people's questions very politely. On the other hand, I did not see any aspect in which GiveDirectly did not do well. Thank you for the very constructive engagement that we had during all the meetings that cleared doubts that some skeptical people may have had about the project.
What did you spend your second transfer on?
I spent the money I received on buying a dairy cow. I had always had a desire to earn an income from raising cattle, to sell milk and to multiply them. Money gotten from selling milk will help me to meet household daily requirements and also to improve my home by building a new house. I need extensive homestead because of my growing family. I then spent the other part of the money to construct a poultry house and then bought some chickens to keep.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($538 USD)
access_time almost 5 years ago
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Describe the biggest difference in your daily life.
I am proud to own a dairy cow in my homestead courtesy of GiveDirectlyt. I had always struggled to bring in assets that I can take pride in and lean on in case of financial needs but this had been challenging due to limited resources. My income has been too small to cater for both household daily needs and investments. I am currently keeping a cow that recently calved thus I have milk for my family consumption and sales. This has greatly changed my life in that I have added assets and I have reduced my household expenditure. I expect to have more offsprings which to me are assets that I can always depend on in case of any financial crisis. To me, having livestock on my farm is the biggest difference in my daily life.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
It was a few minutes to 6 am when I heard a message notification on my phone. Since I was on my way to work, I immediately read the message. I was filled with happiness as I read through the message that confirmed to me that GiveDirectly had sent me money. I knew that I would at long last own a dairy cow that had been my longtime dream.
What did you spend your first transfer on?
I spent a good amount from my first transfer to buy two dairy cows. I made this decision since buying a cow is adding assets in my family and with its milk production, it will reduce my daily household expenditures. I used the remaining KES 2000 to buy some animal feeds and transportation for this feeds. I settled on spending my transfer on dairy farming so that it would relieve me of the cost of buying milk daily. This will be my source of income through milk sales since crop farming is no longer reliable in our region.
Enrolled
access_time 5 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Having been a milk merchant for about four years, I have made profits but has not attained a self actualization level. I do not have cows of my own and I feel this has been missing to make me a proud businessman. I can't be selling other people's milk without some from my own farm. For this reason therefore, receiving this money from GiveDirectly will make me acquire two dairy cows for commercial purposes. This is going to cost me approximately 50,000 KES (500 USD).
I am currently living in a 0.1 acre of land and my goal is to expand it out of the proceeds of my business. Thanks to GiveDirectly I can proudly say the journey to realizing my dream is in the pipeline.
What is the happiest part of your day?
I am a proud businessman. My day involves collection of milk from farmers and selling them in a nearby town for a profit. The happiest part of my day is in the afternoon upon delivery of my products in exchange for pay. It feels good to see another successful day in business.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Raising a family of 11 is an uphill task in a background where the only source of income is a casual job which in any case is hard to come by. When any, its dues cannot surpass 200 KES that goes from hand to mouth. This was exactly my parent's story about ten years ago. Due to poverty instigated stress, my father plunged into alcoholism and succumbed about nine years ago. At this point I had joined secondary school with no funds to sustain me through it. Around me was destitution and before me was a bleak future. I had no choice but to drop out of school, only trusting my life to chance and fate. If I do not work hard, my biggest worry is extending the vicious cycle of poverty to my children in future.
