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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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Enrollment
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Transfers
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Completed
Newsfeed > Benard's Profile
Benard's family
Benard
landscapeCountry:
kenya
workOccupation:
Subsistence farming
faceAge:
42
workCampaign
Standard Kenya
There will be no further updates from this completed recipient.
2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($530 USD)
access_time 5 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
My life is now different than before because I am now peaceful since I have cleared the debt. The creditor used to always come to my house in the evening frustrating my family as they insult them over the debt. This has been disturbing but I thank GD for coming through to rescue me from the situation. My grown up children also nowadays have a comfortable house to sleep. Previously, both of them ( boys and girls) used to sleep in our congested kitchen. This made it uneasy and also embarrassing to them.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, GiveDirectly has done well in giving us unconditional money. This has really changed the living standard of our community. People nowadays have nice houses than the previous ones, others have invested in livestock and business. All I can say is thanks to GiveDirectly. I have not seen anything wrong that GiveDirectly has done.
What did you spend your second transfer on?
I spent some of my second transfer on clearing a debt for a land I had acquired from my neighbor. Often, we could only get little money that could sustain the family basic needs but we were unable to accumulate enough money to clear the debt. I used the rest of the transfers to built a small house for my growing children. Previously, they used squeeze themselves in a congested kitchen. This was very uncomfortable.
 
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($545 USD)
access_time over 5 years ago
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Describe the biggest difference in your daily life.
The biggest difference in my daily life is the livestock that I bought using GiveDirectly transfer. It is an investment that will help us for a long time; for milk and ploughing our farm.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I received the transfer early in the morning around 6 AM. I was happy. I went to a mobile agent a day later to withdraw the funds because the queue was long that day.
What did you spend your first transfer on?
I spent the first transfer that I received from GiveDirectly to buy a cow and an ox - the cow will give us milk for consumption and the ox for ploughing our farm. I also paid national medical insurance and bought a sack of maize because we needed them. I have some balance which I plan to spend on buying seedlings to plant and some clothes for my family. Thank you for the funds, we are grateful as a family. My children even named the cow GiveDirectly and we are happy to have received the funds.
 
Enrolled
access_time almost 6 years ago
 
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money makes me very excited.This means that I will buy one more dairy cow and expand my livestock farming.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The happiest part of my day is in the morning.This is because it is at this time that I get to interact with my friends and family as I do my daily activities.This helps a great deal in relieving stress.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The biggest hardship I have faced in my life was when my wife gave birth to our first child.It was a premature birth and my child had to stay in an incubator for around three months.This was very hard for me because it cost me all my savings.By that time we were not aware of the insurance covers which could have at least helped.This distabilized me financially to date.