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 11:24,pm and I had already retired to bed. I was all alone in my house as my husband was working far away from our home place. I couldn't wait until morning to share the good news with him. I called that night to let him know that we had received the money. He was equally happy and he promised to help me in planning on how to spend the money and reap maximum benefits. I felt so happy that my plan of leasing a small piece of land and putting it under agriculture was finally going to be ralized.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference is that I am now fully independent and moving towards being more financially stable. I look forward to having better living standards with my family with the various investments that we made.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
I used part of it to lease a piece of land and planted potatoes in it. I used part of it to do wiring and connecting electricity to my house. These two were a priority to me for a long time and I looked forward to the daygoing to accomplish them.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means my desire to own a business shall come to pass. Saving up money to start a business has been an hindrance as I depend on selling milk to earn money and which is as little as KES 70 per day and is not enough to buy basic needs such as food and at the same time save some amount. I have identified a niche in selling household items and foodstuffs to the neighborhood because the nearest shopping center is 300 meters away. This will generate good income for me in the future. I need a starting capital of KES 150,000 for building a shop and purchasing stock. I am delighted that I will be financially independent at last.
What is the happiest part of your day?
The rains have been consistent for the last two months. This has brought me happiness because I will have enough food for livestock which will mean an increase in milk production and farm produce. I no longer buy foodstuff such as vegetables because I get it fresh from the farm. This has reduced my expenditure and gives me relief as there is food for each day.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
We depend on livestock keeping as a source of income because we live in a dry area which is prone to drought. This has made our farms unproductive and also rivers dry up easily. I am forced to buy water and feeds for my livestock and this increases my expenditure. Sometimes I spend around KES 200 per day to buy animal feeds but produces around 2 litres that I sell at KES 70. I am counting losses and it is the biggest challenge I am facing.
