GiveDirectly Works to End Extreme Poverty Through Direct Cash Transfers

GiveDirectly is an international nonprofit that focuses on one idea: ending extreme poverty by giving cash directly to people living in it. In Rwanda, the organisation works primarily in rural areas, transferring unconditional cash grants to households identified as among the poorest. The premise is simple and evidence-based. People in poverty are best placed to decide what they need most, whether that is food, housing, healthcare, school fees, or investment in small businesses.

Over more than a decade of research and fieldwork, GiveDirectly has helped shift how development is debated and practiced. Randomised controlled trials have shown that recipients tend to spend transfers responsibly, improve food security, reduce stress, and make long-term investments. In Rwanda, the programme has contributed to improved housing quality, asset ownership, and financial resilience among recipient households.