GiveDirectly celebrates a decade in Rwanda with over $150 million delivered directly to families

Nearly 250,000 households supported as #AcceleratingChange campaign looks towards the next decade

KIGALI, 16 October 2026 (updated 17 October 2026) — GiveDirectly has delivered more than $150 million in unconditional cash transfers in Rwanda since beginning operations in 2016, supporting nearly 250,000 households and contributing to Rwanda’s wider effort to reduce poverty.

The organisation, which now operates in 7 countries, marked its 10th anniversary since starting operations in Rwanda with #AcceleratingChange, a campaign recognising recipients’ choices, partnerships with the Government of Rwanda and donors and the work needed to reach more families.

Officials said on Friday during the anniversary celebrations in Kigali that, having operated across 22 of Rwanda’s 30 districts, GiveDirectly provides cash directly to eligible recipients, enabling them to decide how best to meet their needs and pursue their ambitions, as part of the government’s ambition to graduate the needy out of poverty.

Just this year, GiveDirectly and the Government of Rwanda signed a poverty co-financing basket fund agreement, a five-year strategic partnership that establishes a fund to accelerate poverty reduction through district-level and cash-based graduation investments. 

The partnership, signed earlier this year, aims to mobilise financial resources over the next five years to reduce poverty by 25% across 5 of the most vulnerable districts (including Gisagara, Nyamagabe, Nyanza, Nyamasheke and Rusizi).

Gloria Ngabire, GiveDirectly Rwanda’s Country Director, said that the organisation's approach, though it seems simple, is grounded in evidence. 

“When we began a decade ago, our goal was simple. To find measurable ways to help end poverty across Rwanda. Together, as a social protection sector working in partnership with government, we have contributed to the national effort that brought the poverty rate to 27.4%. Our intervention was straightforward. To deliver unconditional cash transfers safely, then measure the impact and learn from it,” Ngabire said.

“Over the past decade, we have tested different programmes, worked with different communities and explored different transfer amounts. Through that experience, our large lump-sum model, a one-off transfer of Rwf750,000 (about $500) per adult, emerged as the most effective approach we tested,” she added.

To demonstrate and learn from the evidence on sustainability, Ngabire added that evidence from 115 studies across 34 countries showed that unconditional cash transfers increased spending, income, work and assets in the short and medium term. “Today, we are confident that cash works, and curious about how much more it can achieve for Rwandans in need,” she said. 

Officials also said that the organisation emphasises that its work supports the broader Rwanda national effort, which involves government institutions, communities and multiple development partners and that the national figures are therefore not a measure of GiveDirectly’s impact alone.

According to the leadership, beneficiaries, referred to as ‘recipients’, have used transfers for priorities including food, healthcare, education, housing, farmland, livestock and businesses, and their experiences were already central to the 10-year anniversary function, alongside reflections on delivery, evidence and partnerships

“GiveDirectly was founded on a simple but radical belief that people living in poverty can be trusted to make their own decisions and invest in what matters most to them. As recipients spend and invest locally, the benefits extend beyond their households into the wider community,” said Lydiah Wangechi, GiveDirectly’s Vice President of Programmes.

Wangechi described Rwanda as one of GiveDirectly’s strongest settings, citing the government’s clear ambition to end poverty, its progress and the enabling environment it has created. She said a central question for the next decade is what happens to households after graduation. While evidence so far points to lasting impact, she emphasised the need for deeper collaboration to sustain and accelerate that progress.

Dominique Habimana, the Minister of Local Government, said that the true measures of the government’s partnership with GiveDirectly are the “celebration of improved nutrition, children going to school, greater harmony in families, and small businesses creating jobs and opportunities.”

“Social protection is a strategic investment in hope, opportunity and social justice. Through our partnership with GiveDirectly, we aim to help households move towards productivity and independence, strengthening the support they receive while preserving their freedom to decide how best to use their transfers,” he added.

Looking ahead, #AcceleratingChange, the campaign GiveDirectly rolled out with three priorities for the future, including delivering support at greater scale and depth, measuring impact through government systems, and effectively tracking the wider macroeconomic returns.

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