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 biggest difference in your daily life.
The biggest difference in my daily life ever since Give Directly came into my life is that I am now more ambitious and happy. I now own a pair of an ox that I acquired with the first transfer. I know they will be of great help because they will take less time in ploughing my farm compared to when I used to do it alone. I believe I will also get increased harvest since my land will be prepared on time. Apart from that, I will also hire them to my neighbours at a fee and get an income which will help me to easily sustain my family needs.
Describe the moment when you received your money. How did you feel?
I heard the notification message at around 3 am. I ignored the message thinking they were the random messages sent by the mobile service providers. I later became curious and checked what the message was all about. I was so excited to learn that it was an Mpesa message from Give Directly. I remember staying awake till morning because of the excitement that I had. I thank Give Directly for making my day. My life has never been the same since that day.
What did you spend your first transfer on?
I spent part of my first transfer on buying foodstuffs for my family. We have been taking one meal a day or even stay without because I couldn't afford to buy enough food for my family. I decided to enough sacks of food that would last us until the next harvesting season to avoid torturing my family by taking only one meal a day. Apart from that I also bought some pieces of iron sheets and building poles to renovate my house which was almost collapsing. Its roof was also grass-thatched and had holes on it. I later bought a pair of an ox as my big asset. The pair will help me I ploughing my farm which will be a great booster in my farm productivity because it will help me increase the acreage of land under cultivation.
Enrolled
access_time over 5 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
Receiving this money means I will be able to cater for my family's daily upkeep without having to rely much on my husband so that he can concentrate on more pressing needs such as school fees. I will purchase indigenous dairy cows whose milk I will sell in order to earn some income to buy food and water. I will also buy iron sheets for our house to replace the old ones that leak so much during rainy seasons.
What is the happiest part of your day?
Due to water shortage in our area, we have to cover long distances to access water. This could last the whole morning in order to fill all my water jericans and it's very exhausting. However, in the afternoon after preparing lunch for my children, am able to rest making it the happiest part of my day.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Our biggest hardship is limited finances to meet our family needs of food, water and decent housing. At the moment, our direst need is housing because the current one is very old and might collapse incase of very heavy winds or rainfall. The roof is old, rusty and leaks a lot in rainy seasons. Rodents are able to get into the house and they are a big nuisance as they cause destruction to clothes and other household items.
