"i used to do piece work in order to find food for my family, sometimes we could sleep on an empty stomach because i could not find food. i never had time to work in my own farms because all i thought about was food for that day. since i received my money i bought enough food for my family and i no longer go in peoples farms to work i usually spend all the time in my farms."

"When i received my transfer i bought the following household items, mattress, bed, 3 blankets, iron sheets, fertilizer, bags of maize and cooking utensils"

"I am able to eat now because i have food which i bought using my transfer. My sleep is now sweet because i do not have to worry about a leaking roof like before because my house has Iron sheet roof now. And in addition to all this, i am able to take care of my children well, a thing which i was not able to do in the past because of lack of money. I can buy them soap to bath and wash their clothes to go to school looking neat and smart, my life has really changed."

"i was very happy and excited at the same time since when i received the money through airtel money i knew that my life will be changed"

"i have spent the transfer on mattress, bed, blankets, groceries , maize , maize and i plan on maintaining my house with a new roof."

"I was very happy when i received my transfer, we celebrated with my family because i knew some of the challenges we were facing were going to be resolved."

"The transfer from GiveDirectly has helped me and my family in several ways. I bought iron sheets with the part of the money that I plan to use on constructing a house that my children can sleep in. I also bought a cow with part of the transfer, food for our consumption, and paid for the children’s school fees. With the remaining amount of money, I used it in buying clothes for ourselves and the children. The reason why I wanted to construct another house that the children can sleep in, is because the one that they are sleeping in right now is grass-thatched and it has become old. Sometimes the grass comes out and there is none to fill it up with, getting grass has become hard since it is no longer available. My children have hence been forced to at times seek a place to sleep in in the neighborhood. I also wanted a cow because my children have been lacking milk for consumption. We have been buying milk which is very expensive for us, a litre goes by 50/=. Due to the cost, we have hence had to buy a little which is not enough for the children to consume. I have not been in a position to do the above due to lack of money. We depend on farming as our source of livelihood and maize has not been doing well in our area due to a disease that has been affecting it for a while. The little money that I have hence been getting has been especially going to school fee payment and buying food."

"The transfer has brought a big difference in my life and that of my family. I have been able to buy the piece of land that I have always desired. I have started tilling part of the land and I have grown some vegetables. I plan to build a house when I get the money. This way, I will be able to permanently relocate with my children and we can live happily together. Having paid school fees and bought uniforms for my children, I no longer have the stress about where I am going to get the money to do so. I now feel happy and my children are happy too after they got new school uniforms. The transfer also enabled me to buy some food that we are currently consuming. I will hence not be having any worries about food for quite some time. I appreciate GiveDirectly for making my dreams come true. May God bless you."

"This transfer from GiveDirectly has helped me a lot. I was able to buy a cow, fence my piece of land, build a kitchen house and I bought an insecticide for spraying the crops on the farm. The reason why I decided to use the money on the above especially to buy a cow and build the kitchen house, is because I have always wanted to do so for quite a long time and also because these are the things that I have always needed the most. I usually buy milk for my family’s consumption and it is costly. I have a make-shift kitchen that I had set it up beside the main house and covered with polythene bags. I have been using it as my kitchen and at times when it rains, it rains in it and hence it becomes hard to light up the fire and it is also cold to stay there cooking. I also wanted to fence my compound because I live by the roadside and people’s donkeys’ usually come to my compound and they end up causing some destructions. As much as I have always desired to do the above, I have not been in a position to do so due to lack of money. I am a widow and I have been struggling with payment of my children’s school fees with the little money that I have been getting. I had never gotten such a large sum of money before and hence I thank GiveDirectly for this."

"This transfer from GiveDirectly has helped me in a great way. I was able to buy a cow that I have always desired to have. The reason why I wanted to have a cow of my own is that my children have been lacking milk for consumption. They have sometimes been forced to go to school without taking tea in the morning due to a lack of milk to prepare it. I have been buying milk and it is costly to do so. I was also able to buy chairs to seat on since we did not have any in the house. Although I have desired for a long time to do the above things especially to buy a cow, I have however not been able to due to lack of money. My wife and I do not have stable jobs since we did not study that much and we dropped out of school long ago. We, therefore, depend on farming and casual jobs as our sources of income. The money that we get from these sources of income is only enough for us to buy food for everyday consumption such as milk and pay for our children’s school fees."