"Lack of employment is the current challenge I am facing in life. I do casual jobs at the nearby mining quarry. However, the job was stopped two months ago due to a lack of proper safety measures at the site. This has affected me financially; thus, I cannot afford to provide food for the family."

"school fees for my 5 children is the stressful issue I have. I depend entirely on subsistence agriculture which is very unreliable because of luck of rainfall. I never harvested anything last year and still I have to fulfill my family needs. I am passing sleepless nights thinking on how I will pay school fees for my children."

"My goal for the coming year is to finish building my shop, which consists of three rooms. One room will be used for my business, while the other two will be rented out to generate additional income. To complete this project, I am setting aside $20 from my monthly transfers, which I save in our local savings club. Once I have accumulated enough money, I will purchase the necessary materials, such as sand and cement, to finish the construction. This investment will enhance my business and provide extra income through the rental spaces. I am pleased with the progress I have made this far and am deeply grateful for the support I have received."

"My goal for the coming year is to upgrade my grass-thatched house to one with an iron roof. This has been a long-time dream, but I have not been able to achieve it due to pressing responsibilities like paying school fees and buying food for my family. I plan to start setting aside a part of my transfers to help me reach this goal. Having an iron-roofed house will ensure my family's safety and improve our living conditions. I am happy with the progress I have made so far and look forward to the future with optimism, knowing that I can continue to grow and succeed with the support I receive."

"Lack of investment is the I am currently facing in life. My husband and I are aged and depend on subsistence farming. However, family has been interfered by prolonged drought in our area. Farming used to help me sale the surplus and raise school fees for my grandchildren whose mother died some years back. In this term they have missed classes for almost two weeks due to lack of school fees. If I had any investment, I would use it to clear the school fees balances."

"My goal for this coming year is to build a new house since our current one-room home is not enough for our growing family. This situation has been challenging for us. I plan to use the money from selling my livestock to finance the construction of a new house. Having a proper home will greatly reduce the stress we face and ensure the safety and security of my family, giving me peace of mind and improving our quality of life. I am grateful for this opportunity to enhance our living conditions, and I am determined to make the most of it for the well-being of my family. This chance to create a better home environment means a lot to us, promising a brighter future and greater comfort for everyone under our roof."

"Currently, I am involved in the selling and burning of charcoal to support my family. At the same time, I am raising four goats with the goal of breeding them to increase their numbers. This strategy will allow me to sell some of the goats and use the proceeds to purchase a dairy cow. My plan is to start a milk-selling business to serve my neighbors, thereby diversifying my income sources. My objective is to achieve significant profits to ensure my children receive a continuous education and to improve our living conditions. Thus, my primary focus is on these endeavors."

"Owning livestock has been crucial for my livelihood, enabling me to educate my children up to high school. Although I sold most of the animals and was only left with two, I am thankful that I acquired six goats through the transfers, bringing my total to eight. For the majority of my life, I have relied on menial jobs to make ends meet. However, due to my advanced age, I no longer have the physical strength to continue in this line of work. As a result, my goal for the upcoming year and beyond is to breed my goats, allow them to multiply, and ultimately sell them to meet my financial needs."

"My initial goal was to invest in building my house. Thanks to GiveDirectly, I have managed to build a comfortable home for my family. In the future, I plan to build shops to rent out rooms for a fee. Our home is next to the market, so I believe this is a wise decision. Looking ahead, having a steady income is crucial. To achieve this, I plan to use my monthly transfers to build these shops, ensuring my financial security even after the transfers end. I am grateful to GiveDirectly for economically empowering us. Currently, I depend on less reliable casual jobs thus utilizing these transfers perfectly well will completely change our lives."

"As an elderly person, I find it increasingly difficult to engage in physically demanding work that would allow me to earn money to support my grandchildren in the future. However, I have come up with a plan that I believe will help me achieve this goal. I have decided to save my money in a merry-go-round group, pooling funds together with others. Once I receive the pooled money, I intend to continue saving a portion of my transfers in the group. When it's my turn to receive the funds again, I plan to use them to purchase goats. My hope is that these goats will multiply and increase in number and value over time, so that in the future, I will have a reliable source of income to fall back on, especially when the GiveDirectly program comes to an end. I am truly grateful for the opportunity to participate in this program, as it has provided me with a means to secure a better future for myself and my grandchildren. While I may not be able to engage in physically demanding work, I am determined to make the most of the resources available to me through this program and my merry-go-round group."