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?
It was almost 6 pm and I was outside at my compound busy collecting firewood for use in preparing supper when suddenly my phone rang notifying me of a new message. I immediately checked it since I was curious and eager to know what it was all about having heard people in my neighborhood talking about receiving the transfers. I was surprised and I could not believe it when I saw that I had received KES 55000 in my mobile money account from GiveDirectly. I became so excited on seeing this and I felt like jumping up with joy. I shared the good news with my husband and we celebrated together thanking God for it.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The transfer from GiveDirectly brought a big difference in our lives as a family. We are no longer stressed about where to get money to send to our daughter who is pursuing her studies at the University for her upkeep since we managed to save up some amount for that. Now and then she usually asks for money for house rent, food, etc and at times we do not have anything to give her. Other than that, we are glad because we have enough food to eat having bought a bag of maize. The cost of living has at the moment skyrocketed and a 2-kg tin of maize is being sold at KES 200.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
We spent KES 4500 and KES 6000 of our recent transfer on buying barbed wire and trees respectively. We subdivided our land and fenced it because we wanted our cows to graze on it rotationally. Other than that, we also bought another cow at KES 25000. We only had one cow and when it is dry, we are usually forced to buy milk. We thus decided to buy another one to ensure a constant supply of milk for consumption and sale. We have been hoping for a while now to accomplish the above tasks but we were not in a position to since we didn't have the money. Being small-scale dairy and poultry farmers, we usually depend on the sale of milk and eggs to earn a living. Sometimes we hatch the chicks and sell them. The money that we get is not much, it is only enough to meet our basic needs. We are thus so much grateful to GiveDirectly because their transfer enabled us to achieve our goals. With the remaining transfer amount, we spent KES 6000 on buying a bag of maize for our consumption, and some clothes, and we sent some to our daughter in the university to use in paying her house rent and for upkeep.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I got a fracture on my leg in 2019 through an accident, which rendered me non-productive. Upon frequent hospital visits, the doctor advised me not to perform heavy tasks as that could worsen my recovery. As a norm, I used to fetch water from the water pan for household use but due to the fracture, I could no longer. Therefore, this drove my ambition to buy a water tank to harvest rainwater. Unfortunately, finances could not allow me to as my family of 3 depends on farming which sadly, had dropped in the past 3 years. I intend to use KES 25000 to install a water tank as well as use the rest of the transfers to pay school fees for my son at the university. I will be glad that my family will access clean water easily and my son will study without interruptions.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Since my family of 3 depends on maize production for a living, harvests are not always a guarantee as it is affected by the poor climatic conditions and diseases. However, I was pleased 2 months ago when I harvested 3 bags of maize, unlike the previous year when I harvested 2 bags. I was happy that my family will be food secure for the next 5 months hence I will be able to save for other family needs.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Food insecurity is the biggest hardship I am currently facing. My family of 3 cultivates maize on 0.4 acres of land but unfortunately, the product has been low due to diseases and poor climatic conditions. It saddens me that my family has to forgo meals as the income I earn through the milk sales is insufficient to purchase food for the household.
