Following the delivery of their first lump-sum payment, our follow-up team spoke to Selestina, Maureen, and Beatrice about how they spent their transfers and about how their lives have changed after receiving them.
Both Selestina and Beatrice speak about the work and worry required to maintain a house. Purchasing a metal roof, as they have with their transfer, removes much of the stress and cost of sleeping under leaky thatch. Maureen’s story is somewhat atypical; she used a portion of her first transfer to pay bail for her brother-in-law. Our team followed up with her to better understand her circumstances.
Selestina, age 62, is single and lives with two children.
I bought a mattress and now I sleep comfortably. My house was also in a bad condition and no one could help me build another one. However when I received the transfer I built an iron-sheet roofed house and now I live well.
I also bought seats, clothes, and spent the rest of the money on food.
Maureen
Maureen, age 19, lives with her husband Joseph, age 23, and one child.
My life is better because I bought a cow and I used the remaining money to pay cash bail for my brother-in-law.
The biggest difference is that my brother-in-law is now out on remand.
* The GiveDirectly team followed up with Maureen and found that Maureen spent part of her transfer, about 20,000 shillings [$195] on paying a bail for her brother-in-law. He had been jailed for purchasing a stolen mobile phone.
Beatrice
Beatrice, age 30, lives with her husband Peter, age 32, and three children.
I spent the entire transfer to build an iron sheet house since my old house used to leak a lot.
The biggest difference in my daily life is that now I stay in a very comfortable house. I no longer have to worry during the rainy season.