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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2nd Payment
Transfer Amount
53150 KES ($517 USD)
access_time over 4 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 different than how it would have been had I not received the transfer because I am now a proud owner of two dairy cows. Also, my business of buying and selling chicken has proven worth investing on. Due to this, I have been able to meet our daily needs on time.
In your opinion, what does GiveDirectly do well, and what does it not do well?
In my own opinion, GiveDirectly did well by giving us a financial support and I do not see anything that they did not do well.
What did you spend your second transfer on?
When I received my second transfer, I bought a dairy cow so that I would not be buying milk daily and also to be able to pay for my children's education using the income from milk sales. Also, I spent some amount to start a business of buying and selling chicken. On the remaining amount, I bought some clothes and food for my family.
Initial Payment
Transfer Amount
55000 KES ($531 USD)
access_time 5 years ago
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Describe the biggest difference in your daily life.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that I have built a better and spacious house for my family. I used to live in a small grass-thatched house which could not host all my family comfortably. My children could risk walking late night to spent night at their grandmother house and this was so embarrassing. I could not welcome visitors to my house because I had no decent and space for them. Currently, my children are happy because the have a good place to sleep and to do their assignments on time. I do welcome visitors without hesitating because of a decent house. I am so happy for the support it has changed our living standard.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
The moment when I received the money I felt so happy. I was still in bed it was around 3 Am in the morning when I heard a message from my phone and when I checked it I was so happy because I have never received such amount of money before. I immediately wake up my family members to inform them of the good news and everyone was so happy. I knew I would be happy to buy building materials to build a better and spacious house for my family.
What did you spend your first transfer on?
I spent my first transfer to built a better and spacious house for my family. I used to live in a small grass-thatched house with my family and this was not good at all because I have grown-up children and is a taboo in our culture. I could not welcome visitors to my house because I had no space for them and the rest of the money I used it to buy clothes, heifer and food for the family because we had none in store.
Enrolled
access_time over 5 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Being the last born of my family, the small hut i currently live in with my family adjacent to my parents' house was inherited from my father since i haven't been able to build my own house. I therefore plan to use my first transfer to build my own two roomed iron roofed house far from my parents' compound and one hut that will serve as a kitchen. My second transfer will enable me to buy a dairy cow since i currently spend a lot in buying milk for family consumption from a neighbour.
What is the happiest part of your day?
My usual day entails waking up as early as 7.30 am to take breakfast before heading out to search for casual jobs in people's homes, which i engage myself in till evening when i head back home having gotten some money to buy food for my family, which is the time i am most happy.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
I recently completed my National Youth Service training three months ago which drained a lot of money from my parents who ended up selling their livestock to ensure i get to finish my course. Since then, they have been having great hopes in me in that they expect me to get employed so that i can compensate for the money they raised to see me through my education. However, things has been hard for me since i have applied for many jobs yet i haven't gotten any positive feedbacks or response from my applications. I now engage in manual jobs such as digging, weeding and fencing people's farms for survival. This is the biggest hardship i have faced.
