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 ($440 USD)
access_time 2 years ago
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How is your life different than it would have been if you never received the transfer?
Going into the future, I of course have many goals that I did not have before receiving the transfers from GiveDirectly. Having received the transfers and having used it to buy a piece of land, I now look forward to building a new house in it. y new plans is to build a new house in the piece of land that I bought. I intend to save up enough money from my small business and be in a position to put up one. Right now I stay in a house built on my parents piece of land. I do not know whether I will get a share of this land and it is for this reason that I decided to purchase my own piece of land too. One of my three children will soon too join secondary school and that will mean that I need more money to pay her school fees. I look forward to accomplishing all these in the near future.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my opinion, GiveDirectly does well in giving out support in form of cash and doing so without any form of discrimination whatsoever. This gives people an opportunity to choose how best the money can benefit them and make people feel so much satisfied Ii n the long run. I did not find anything that I thought GiveDirectly could have done better.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I used KES 30000 to clear a piece of land that I had bought upon receiving the first transfer. The remaining amount was used to buy a goat for keeping and food for the family as well. I am a single mother of three and I look forward to building a new house for my children in the newly bought piece of land.I feel so much happy to have bought the piece of land; it is something I have been looking forward to achieve and I am so grateful that I have finally realized.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($471 USD)
access_time over 2 years ago
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Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I was delighted when I first realized that I had received a message from GiveDirectly that confirmed the receipt of the first transfer. At that moment, I was with my children at home taking our breakfast, and had to share the exciting news with them. Together with us was also my sister, who had visited our home and had to witness and celebrate with us even though her enrollment was paused with the suspicion of illegibility. We had a long discussion and celebration with my family and later collected on the second day from the nearby shopping center.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
I had been doing a small business within the nearby shopping center and had been making small savings that I would have exhausted if I would have used to pay for the piece of land. I am glad that I got this support that has brought in the biggest difference after making the payment.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
During enrollment, I had a plan to get a dairy cow to add to the one had been having that would have increased milk production for my family of five. As a single mother, I had been living on my mother's piece of land and had to consider buying my own where I can put up permanent structures for my children. With the first transfer, I could make a first deposit of KES 35000 with the promise to make the second and the last payment when I receive the second transfer. I also spent KES 7500 on buying two sheep that I am currently rearing with a plan to sell them out in the future. In addition, I paid the tuition fees for my son worth KES 5000 and used the remaining amount on buying foodstuff and clothing for my family of five.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
My ambition is to be a dairy farmer. Receiving this money means owning two dairy cows. I am a single parent doing a small business to raise a family of 4. This gives me a daily income of KES100 that can only sustain my family's basic needs like food, clothes, and school necessities for my children. KES 60,000 from these transfers will secure me two dairy cows. Having it gives me joy and also will increase my income since I will sell the surplus. The rest I will use in boosting my grocery business.
What is the happiest part of your day?
I am a groceries vendor and it fetches good money during the dry seasons. Due to low production and high demand, I get good profits at the end of the day. This gives me Joy as a business person because an increase in profits means increased income.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
The challenge I am facing currently is school fees payment for my son in secondary and two others in primary level. As a single parent raising KES 27,000 yearly is not easy from a daily income of KES 200. My responsibility is to ensure that they get all the basic needs but seeing them stay at home due to school fees disappoints me.