In 2017, GiveDirectly launched a Universal Basic Income Program. As part of this program, we are running a randomized control trial across 295 rural villages in the Western and Rift Valley region of Kenya. The results of the study will help us understand the potential impact that a basic income could have on eradicating poverty worldwide.
In the summer of 2019, we photographed some of our UBI recipients and collected anecdotal information on what they’ve spent their funds on to date. These photographs are not randomly selected (we chose some of our very favorite photos to share here) and they only provide a snapshot into a small handful of recipients’ lives. You can read more unfiltered, unedited, live-stream stories from recipients on GDLive.
Frederick & Zubeta
Fredrick A. and his wife Zubeta N. have used part of their basic income funds to install solar-powered electricity in their home. Kenya produces about 70% of their electricity from renewable sources, leapfrogging older technology (like landline phones) by using solar power.
Irene
Irene N. — who is a teacher — used her UBI transfer to cover school fees for her son. Each day, Irene walks her students home from school before returning home herself.
Joyce
Joyce O. purchased a solar-powered television for her family with part of her transfer.
Wellington
Wellington O. used his transfer to replace his small thatched-roof home with a larger mud house built using iron sheets for a roof. In 2013, GiveDirectly published a blog post outlining the benefits of installing a metal roof.
Henry
Henry O. built out infrastructure for his farm, where he keeps livestock and grows mangoes.
