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.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
My next plan is to start poultry farming since this is cheaper to manage and requires less labour. In the next four months, I would start purchasing building materials for poultry house construction. I hope this venture would enable me to earn money to cater to my family needs with fewer struggles.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
Give Directly has been helpful to us as a family. In the last four months, we have been spending these transfers to pay for rent and buy some basic items for our lastborn child who is a university student. The profit which we make from the business which we operate as a family we have channelled to farming. We spend on leasing a piece of land which we used to plant some maize. This is a great step for us and It is our hope that these crops shall do well and we will have some stock for sale once we harvest the produce. I believe that we wouldn't have managed to do all this were it not for GiveDirectly.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
We have a plot next to a shopping centre and it is my plan in the next six months to start fencing the piece of land and start constructing business premises. I intend to have one room for the family venture as a cereal store where I would operate myself. My husband would continue with one which we run currently at open-air markets. This would see us have more income and I would have time to attend to the poultry and other farm operations since it is near our home.
20th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($22 USD)
access_time 5 years ago
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Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
Being a businesswoman, my job entails moving from market to market to sell my products. At times, I have a high stock hence facing a challenge in storage. In the next four months, I. plan to raise some funds to construct a store. This will not only help me in storage but also will serve as a depot where other business people can come get their goods for sale. By doing this, I will at least rest from the hussle of moving from place to place
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my daily life is at the moment, I have peace of mind because most of the things that were worrying me are now in place. Initially, there was a lot of pressure because I had a lot of expenses to meet. This included the daily purchase of milk for my family consumption. At the moment, I have abundant production from my dairy cows both for household consumption as well as for resale hence generates some income to meet other family expenses.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I believe by six months, My life would have really changed. My business will have expanded from retail to wholesale hence I will no longer get tired moving from one market to another. This will allow me to spend a lot of time at home. Besides, I will be able to supervise home activities as I run my business. I will also be generating more income which will enable me to cater to my family needs
16th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($22 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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How is your life currently different from how it was four months ago?
In the coming month, I will be harvesting maize, a crop that I planted using the transfer. I planted the crop for months ago using the transfer to buy seeds, fertilizer and in land preparation.This Maize will reduce my household daily expenditure by eliminating the need to buy all the foodstuffs for the household in cash. I will instead be using the maize for food and utilize the money that would otherwise be spent on food in more investments.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
I have a new goal to start poultry farming business. I intended to save money in a merry go round group and establish the program for income generation. The sale of eggs and even chicken will be another source of income to enable me to feed my household and also to take care of my daughter at school.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my daily life is in the way I manage to meet my family's needs. I am so happy and it is even evident in my current state of health. I look healthier and happier. This is because my who is away from home in the University in a big city child is well taken care of. I have been using the money to pay her rent and also to provide for her upkeep and hence am no longer worried about her welfare. The worry of having her thrown out of her hostel by the landlord because of nonpayment of rent completely disappeared with the beginning of the transfers. Unlike the other children who went to college before, she is well-catered for and this makes me a proud mother.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I expect to have increased the base of my income sources by buying a cow for milk production. I also will have established a poultry farm. My abilities to meet my daily needs and those of my family will be greater. In the next six months, I am confident that the money I received from GiveDirectly will have caused me to do more in my cereals and potato business.
12th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($23 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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How is your life currently different from how it was four months ago?
My life is different in that I am now able to meet most of my needs without having to stress myself on where to get the money. We are able to meet basic needs without any difficulty. My family is generally happier than it was four months ago.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
In the next four months I want to struggle enough to be able to save enough money through merry go round. When I get the money from the merry go round in the next four months I want to start poultry keeping. I will use the money to build a poultry house and buy chicken for rearing. This shall be a great step towards being self reliant.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that I have had peace of mind. With the little transfers, I have been able to plan ahead without worrying about uncertainities. This has enabled me give the best education to my children in that I can be able to pay school fees in time.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
In the next six months We shall have an established poultry unit. Depending on the success of the dairy project, we shall be able to start dairy farming that will see us have more income for the family and meet most of the family needs without any difficulty or strain.
6th Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($23 USD)
access_time over 6 years ago
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How is your life currently different from how it was four months ago?
My life is currently different from how it was four months ago in that currently, I have peace of mind in life since I have paid the heavy expense of fee. I now have a security in my life at least I can acquire some basic household commodities unlike before. I also have piped clean water for my family usage.
Do you have any new or additional goals for your life for the next four months?
The new goal that I have for my life in the next four months is to start a poultry farming.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer.
The biggest difference in my daily life in the last four months preceding the current transfer is that I have had a humble and peaceful mind in that I have been supported in fee payment. It has not been simple servicing a loan I took to pay fee for my daughter till the GD transfer came to assist.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
In the next six months, I expect to have started poultry farming will be earning a good income from it. I will be able to provide for my family basic needs. I also expect to have ecletricity in my household.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
2280 KES ($23 USD)
access_time over 6 years ago
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Do you have any new goals that you didn't have before receiving the transfer?
My new goal now is that I want to build a store that will help to conduct my business effectively.
How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My life is currently different than before since I am very happy and grateful to Give directly.My life before was hard and nothing positively could be said about me since I had a lot of debts.Now am able to plan for the future unlike before it was hard.I can also educate my children my with ease.
How do you expect your life to change in the next six months?
I expect my life to change in the next six months in that my business will be stable.I can also start poultry keeping business to support other needs at home.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my life is that I am happy now and confident about taking care of my family.This transfers has reduced stress that are related to debts that I used to incur due to needs at home.
Enrolled
access_time almost 7 years ago
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
We have always desired to give our children the best in terms of education. There are times when we had our children in various schools and we needed money to pay their school fees. We strained financially as a family and we ended up borrowing more than we were able to pay. It is still a problem up to date but we are struggling to clear the debts. This has been the biggest hardship in our lives.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is in the evening when I am done with all the days activities. This is the time that I can relax and interact with my family members.
What are you planning to spend your transfer on?
I am planning to use part of my transfers on monthly merry go round contributions. This will enable me build up a plot that I already have in the long run. I also have plans of comitting the transfers as payment for a loan borrowed in a bank.
What is the achievement you are proudest of?
We have had to struggle to educate our children from primary school all the way to University. Currently, we have two children who recently graduated from various universities, Our last born is a first year university student at the University of Eldoret. We are not yet done but at least we have something to show for our struggle and we consider that an achievement.