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 around 9:16 AM when I was cleaning my compound when my mobile phone started ringing. That was an alert that I had received a new message. Since I wasn't expecting to hear from anyone, I opted to ignore it and went ahead with the task that I was handling. Before I could even finish another message popped in and I was a bit anxious. I decided to check who might have sent the two messages at that time. After checking, I realized that it was a Mpesa message from GiveDirectly, I had at long last received my first KES 55000 as I had been promised earlier. I was super excited and even surprised not knowing where to start from. After some minutes, I decided to inform my spouse about the news and we started celebrating happily knowing that our lives will never be the same again.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that the financial support has empowered me to start a business of buying and selling livestock more goats and chicken. I have been jobless for all that long and only relying on my husband for the daily upkeep. I have always dreamed and wanted to start a business but I had no capital to start with. I am now a happy entrepreneur and very ambitious because ever since I started the business of buying goats and chicken from around the village and selling them on Wednesdays during market days for profit. I am glad the business is doing well and through this, am now able to cater to my family's daily needs with ease unlike before whereby we used to strain a lot.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I spent part of my first transfer on buying a few building materials which uncle iron roofs at KES 6000, nails and timber, and the labor charge of KES 3000. This was for the renovation of the roof since it was so old and leaky, whenever it could rain it was so hectic. Also, I bought a second-hand bicycle at KES 6000 which has been helping in transporting water from the dam to my homestead which is quite far. I later bought a q water tank 210 liters KES 2300 which has been of great to me in storing water. I also bought five chickens and twelve goats at a total of 32500 which I am planning to start a business through them. This will now be the business that I will rely on all the time. I later cleared school fees of KES 450 for my son and bought new school uniforms for him. With the remaining amount, I bought enough foodstuffs for my family
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means an investment in goat and chicken farming. This is what can sustain me and my family given the low rainfall in this region. They can survive the dry seasons well. I will begin with five goats and ten chicken which will cost me approximately KES 15,000 and KES 5,000 respectively. I will also budget KES 40,000 to buy two oxen and a plough to help me till my land when the rains come.
What is the happiest part of your day?
My afternoon hours are usually very busy because this is the time I go to the bushes to get charcoal for sale. The morning hours are usually less strenuous which makes it the happiest part of my day. I take this time to do the house chores within my compound.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The persistent drought and famine in this region has made life so difficult for me. The only means of getting income for me is crop and livestock farming. Low rainfall has therefore lowered my standard of living to a very deplorable condition. I cannot afford food, clothes, proper shelter and school fees for my children. I have three children and satisfying all these needs has been an uphill task. Lack of enough income especially from my farm, which I depend on is therefore my biggest hardship.
