"Givedirectly have been very good to me and I'm grateful to them for everything."

"Givedirectly is helping us financially and making us self dependent"

"Givedirectly is helping to make us self dependent"

"Givedirectly is helping us financially it giving us another chance to be self dependent."

"I hope to complete my house project before next year"

"I have a family of seven children, two of whom are still in school. With the scarce casual labor on which I had previously relied, providing them with a daily meal has been difficult. Receiving the first transfer was a relief not only for me, but also for my older son, who had been doing a lot of casual labor for little pay and making sure he could help us meet our daily household bills. I added $150 to his bank account because he had some savings that he used to purchase a motorcycle. He had been operating a motorcycle taxi since then, returning home every evening with at least food and saving a portion of the proceeds. I am glad he's doing well and isn't struggling with the casual labor he used to do. I also purchased iron sheets and sand to repair the roof and floor of my current residence. I had hoped to replace the grass thatch roof with iron sheets and the dusty floor with a cement floor that is easy to clean. In addition, I spent $50 on a bicycle that I had been using to get to and from work, and I am glad that it has made my movement easier and more affordable because I no longer have to pay for transportation. I also spent $30 on food during the Christmas season and used the remainder to pay secondary school fees for my two children."

"What has made my life harder is the sickness that I have,I am suffering from leprosy disease since 2000 in that my fingers and toes keep getting off my hands and legs.This has mad my life hard because I can not work anymore to take care of my 2 children especially the 11 year old child of mine. I was told by the doctors not to work because of the sickness and this has contributed to poverty in my home which has made life hard and complicated, the treatment is very expensive I can't afford it and it's now 1 year since I stopped getting the treatment."

"My daily earner is my charcoal-burning business. I do it on my 5-acre plot of land. I focus my sales on my neighbors and the like, selling a sack at $4 each. The funds from GiveDirectly allowed me to be able to renovate my 3-bedroom house, including adding a verandah. With my meager income, expecting me to improve my house when the funds were barely enough to live on was a tall order. My husband and I share 8 kids, some of whom live with him and some with me. He lives in Mombasa, more specifically in Miritini. He works casual jobs on construction sites, earning $10 a day. The rest of the funds, needless to say, went towards the kids' tuition. My eldest is in Form 4, while our 2nd to 4th born are all at Complex Miritini Secondary in Forms 3, 3, and 1, respectively. All four live with their father in Miritini. Our fifth to eighth children are all in Mwaradinda Primary. We pay $20 for Class 8 students, as well as $20 for her Grade 6 siblings who attend the same school. Our youngest is in nursery school, and we pay $10 for him per term. The funds from GiveDirectly allowed us to continue to provide for our family and improve their quality of life, thanks to the disposable income."

"If I remember correctly, it was approximately 2 pm when I received a message on my phone while my cows were grazing in the field. I decided not to look till I got home and asked my assistance to tell me what kind of message it was because I cannot read. She checked and told me that I had indeed gotten the initial $550 transfer from GiveDirectly. Because I did not want anybody to find out that I had received some money, I refrained from jumping and ululating in joy."

"When I withdrew the money, I first opted to settle a school fee balance of $80 for my secondary school child so that he could be retained in school for his end-term examinations. Thereafter, I used $200 to do the shopping for my daughter who was joining form one. Having managed to do the two vital and demanding issues, I decided to revive my grocery business which had collapsed due to a lack of money to sustain it. I used $100 to restock it. Currently, I am happy that the business is flourishing and this could not be possible if it were not for the help from GiveDirectly. For the remaining amount, I bought some food for my family."