The Life You Can Save is collaborating with GiveDirectly to provide cash transfers that will help lift all 140 families in a village in Southern Rwanda, out of extreme poverty. Each household will receive ~$1,100 through GiveDirectly’s cash transfer program, empowering them to address their most pressing needs.

Families in this village currently face impossible choices, such as:

• Food: Many families are limited to one meal a day, with diets often confined to crops like maize and beans.
• Education: There is no school in the village; children must travel to neighboring villages for schooling.
• Health and water: Families in the village only have access to one clean water source, while healthcare access involves a 20-minute journey to the nearest health center.
• Steady income: Families face a lack of access to stable income, often earning just $1 to $2 a day from small-scale farming, limiting their ability to save or invest in their future.

Although the nearest school is only a 20-minute walk away, most families can’t afford to send their children. Cash transfers can cover school fees ($19/semester) and supplies ($50), making regular attendance easier.

The nearest health center is in a neighboring village, approximately a 20-minute walk away. With cash, families can pay for health insurance at around $15, reducing out-of-pocket medical expenses. In urgent situations, they could also take a mototaxi, costing $2 to $20, to reach care more quickly.

There is only one clean water source for residents, located around a 40-minute walk away for many. Cash transfers could help them buy better water storage solutions, or even contribute to a community water pump (~$200).

Most families are subsistence farmers currently, reliant on small plots, limited inputs, and locally grown crops like beans, maize, and cassava.

Your donations will enable families to invest in:

• Better farming equipment: Cash allows families to buy better seeds and fertilizers to grow more food. For example, a small plot of land can cost $200–$300
• Livestock: Families can raise animals like pigs (~$15) or cows ($250–$700) for food and income.
• Entrepreneurship: Cash can help start or grow small businesses, like setting up a shop or buying tools, to earn more money.
• Education: Families can cover school fees and purchase supplies to give their children better opportunities. 
• And more, all based on the unique needs and aspirations of each family.

Giving cash works because it gives families the agency to meet their individual needs and decide how to build their own futures. Hundreds of academic studies show families use cash to increase earnings, health, education, and much more.