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?
I was in the field working on my farm when I got a notification on my phone. I reached out to it where I had placed it and to my surprise I had received KES 55000 which was my first transfer from GiveDirectly. I was filled with joy and happiness as I have never received such an amount before. I felt relived about the stresses which I had on paying school fees for my child and acquiring a cow.
Describe the biggest difference in your daily life since you started receiving payments from GiveDirectly.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that now I have two dairy cows in my compound. The one I had before was not lactating and I was forced to buy milk for use at home. That was very costly for me as I do depend on my daily wage which are not always enough to cater for our basic needs. Now, we got a new breed which I bought and is lactating and that has saved me the cost of buying milk.
What did you spend your most recent transfer(s) on?
Every day, I go to my neighbors homes to seek casual jobs so that I can raise money for buying food for my family and support my children in school. First I prioritize on buying a dairy cow which cost me KES 31000, I then spent KES 12000 on paying school fees for my child who is in form three. I also invested in livestock through acquisition of two goats at a cost of KES 10000. The remaining amount, I spent on buying some clothes for my children so that they can have some to change with those which they had. I am glad that these transfers enabled me to acquire livestock, pay school fees and acquire clothes which I couldn't afford at the moment due to menial income from casual jobs.
Enrolled
access_time over 2 years ago
What does receiving this money mean to you?
I plan to spend the money on building a house and buying a dairy cow. My house is too small to accommodate my family. I will spend about KES 30,000 on this. I will also buy a higher at KES 20,000. Finally, I plan to buy land at about KES 50,000 to increase the space where I can grow crops for my household consumption.
What is the happiest part of your day?
In the last six months, I harvested maize that lasted harvested maize that will last us 2 for about two months. I am relieved from having to buy maize on a daily basis.The KES 120 per day that I would have spent on this is now going to my savings that will go towards paying school fees.
What is the biggest hardship you've faced in your life?
Raising school fees for my child in secondary is the biggest challenge that I face right now. I have to spend about KES 20,000 per year on this. It strains me because I rely on farming only, which is not sufficient.
