My eldest child is currently in grade 6 and will be transitioning to junior secondary school next year. This change will require me to have some funds for her school shopping and enrollment. To ensure I am fully prepared, I plan to continue saving a portion of my transfers so that next year I will receive the pooled money and I can enroll her in school without any difficulties. Once my child is enrolled, I will focus on saving the portion of my transfers through the Merry-Go-round savings group with the goal of buying goats and a good bed. While I am happy to have purchased a good mattress with my previous transfers, I still need a proper bed for me to sleep more comfortably. Once this is achieved, I will be very happy. My hopes for the goats are that they will multiply, increasing in both number and value, so that in the future I may sell some of them to help fund my children's education and possibly trade others for cows that I can use to plow my farm. The cows will significantly reduce the expenses we typically incur during farm preparations. I pray that the opportunities provided by the transfers from GiveDirectly will enable me to achieve my goals. I am determined to create a better future for my family and have something to be proud of, especially when this program comes to an end.

I have four children in school, and it’s essential for me to ensure they can continue their education, so I spent $20 of my recent transfers that I received from GiveDirectly to pay their school fees, allowing them to stay enrolled and focus on their studies. I also spent $14 to buy a school uniform and shoes for one of my children, as her previous ones were worn out and not presentable. I am thrilled to see her excited and confidently going to school, looking smart and feeling proud. Additionally, for a long time, I have been sleeping on a very worn-out bed with uncomfortable bedding. My wish has always been to have a nice bed and mattress. To make this dream a reality, I have been saving a portion of my transfers in a merry-go-round savings group. Recently, I saved $60 of my transfers, and I am delighted that this August, I was able to receive the pooled funds. With that money, I purchased a good mattress, and now I can sleep in much better conditions as I await to buy a bed. Lastly, I spent the remaining $8 on food for my family, ensuring we have enough to eat and don’t go hungry. I feel grateful for the support I have received, and I am committed to improving our lives and providing for my family.

My main focus right now is to design a new house for my family. Our current home is just too cramped to comfortably accommodate all of us. With the family growing, it's become increasingly apparent that we need more space to live comfortably. Alongside this, I'm also aiming to save up more money. This isn't just for general savings but specifically to ensure that when my children move on to secondary school, I'll have the funds necessary to support their education. Right now, they're still in the lower grades, but I know how quickly time flies, and I want to be prepared for when that transition comes. It's all about planning for the future and ensuring that my family has what they need to thrive.

Some months ago, I made a conscious decision to take control of my family's future by joining a Merry Go Round in our village. Over the past three months, I have diligently contributed $60 towards our collective goal of building a new, more spacious home. With five children, our current dwelling feels cramped, and the thought of providing them with a comfortable living space drives me forward. However, knowing that constructing a new house outright would be financially daunting, I embraced the community initiative of the Chama to gradually achieve our dream. In addition to investing in our future home, I prioritized my children's education by allocating $26 towards their school fees. The recurring fear of them being sent home due to unpaid fees haunted me, but with this support, I could ensure their uninterrupted learning. Furthermore, I purchased two chickens for $10, a seemingly unconventional choice but one that provides a sense of security in times of financial uncertainty. As my husband and I navigate the unpredictability of casual jobs, having this backup plan offers comforting assurance. With the remaining funds, I stocked our pantry with essential food supplies, alleviating the strain on our finances during lean periods. Each expenditure, fueled by the unconditional cash transfers, represents a step towards stability and resilience for my family.

I am determined to start my own business by buying fish and soap to sell to my neighbors, aiming to improve my family's and my own life. I also want to support my husband, who currently works at a construction site mixing sand and cement. With the savings from my merry-go-round contributions, I believe I can soon start my business. Additionally, I plan to purchase good beds for my children, as their current sleeping arrangements do not bring me joy. My ultimate goal is to provide a better life for them and to see their lives improve.

I am a mother of five children, with four currently attending school while one is not yet of age. With the transfer, I managed to allocate $4 to cover their school fees. Additionally, I joined a merry-go-round, contributing $20 monthly, which we then give to a fellow member. This initiative has significantly improved my life as I was able to purchase two goats. I also bought three chickens at $3 each from the transfer, intending to breed them for sale. With the remaining $1, I bought food that brought joy to my family.

The prospect of acquiring a new bed means a lot to me. Sleeping on a sisal-roped bed has caused me discomfort and fatigue, and I see this as an opportunity to have a decent and comfortable sleeping space. Once I have acquired the bed, I plan to continue saving through the merry-go-round club for the education of my eldest child, who is currently in grade 5. In the next two years, he will be entering junior high school, and I anticipate that the educational expenses at that level will be considerably higher than what we can afford with our current income from casual jobs. Supporting his education is not only crucial for his future success but also a means of easing the financial burden on his father and me as we strive to provide for him and his siblings.

I am a member of a merry-go-round club consisting of ten people in my community. We each contribute $20 from our cash transfers every month, and this amount is given to one member at a time in a rotational manner. Over the past three months, I have been actively participating in this club, investing a significant portion of my cash transfers. When my turn comes to receive this lump sum amount, I plan to use it to purchase a decent wooden bed and a comfortable mattress. For a long time, I have been sleeping on a traditional sisal-roped bed, which is far from comfortable. Upgrading to a better bed has been a desire of mine, but financial constraints made it seem like an unattainable goal. My husband, who is the primary breadwinner of our family, relies on sporadic casual jobs in house construction. There are times when he goes for weeks without any work, making it challenging for him to provide for our daily needs, let alone afford a new bed. I am genuinely grateful that the cash transfers are making it possible for me to fulfill this desire. After contributing the $20 towards our merry-go-round group, I typically allocate the rest of the cash towards either purchasing food or paying school fees for my child, depending on the most pressing need at the time.

My primary goal is to save for the education of my firstborn, who will be transitioning to junior high school in the next two years. Junior high school is more expensive than primary school, and I want to ensure that she does not face the risk of missing out on her education due to financial constraints. Given that the income my husband and I earn through casual jobs is insufficient to save for her education and that of her younger siblings, the cash transfers will play a crucial role in making this dream a reality. I am confident that with ongoing support, I will be able to save for her education and provide a brighter future for all my five children.

Whenever I receive cash transfers, I usually allocate $20 towards a merry-go-round savings group, intending to eventually purchase a decent wooden bed and a comfortable mattress. Currently, I sleep on a sisal-twined bed, which is uncomfortable and unpleasant. Owning a proper bed would greatly improve my sleeping conditions. After setting aside funds for the bed, I spend the remaining amount on essential expenses such as food, school fees, or livestock. Fortunately, when I received the recent cash transfer, my household had enough food for the next few days. Also, all four of my children's school fees had already been covered for the term through previous cash transfers. With these needs taken care of, I decided to allocate $10 towards purchasing four chickens for rearing, and the rest of the funds were used to buy additional maize flour to boost the little left. I am grateful that my children can study without interruptions, my household rarely experiences a lack of food, and now I have started my poultry-keeping practice thanks to GiveDirectly's support.

The bare, dusty floor has been the bed for my kids, who are sleeping on sacks. I work as a casual laborer selling charcoal, and the $2 I make per bag barely covers the cost of food and the children' school expenses. I struggle to purchase a bed for my kids and give them better sleeping conditions because of how little money I make. Their health has suffered as a result of the time they have spent sleeping on the flour. I intend to purchase a large bed and mattress that can fit all four of my kids in an effort to stop their health struggles. This will decrease the number of times I visit the hospital for treatment and ensure that the money is used for other things.

To provide for our four children, my husband takes on casual tasks in house construction and I make charcoal for money. Given the scarcity of trees and the physical demands of charcoal burning, the most I can raise in a month is $15, which is hardly enough for food. What my spouse makes can neither take us through the month, without running out of household supplies, majorly food. Most of the cash I received in the recent three transfers went towards food to alleviate the problem in the household and livestock. I spent $32 on maize flour; at least we have never run out of food again. I used $32 to buy a goat and saved $14 that I plan to buy three chickens. My goal is to rear these animals, let them breed, and increase the herd so that I can raise money for my children's school fees in the future. Also, to support their education, I saved $14 through a merry-go-round club in my community. If all goes well, I wish to be saving the same monthly amount with future transfers. Lastly, since the school opened today, I paid their fees for the ongoing academic term in advance and as a precaution against having them sent home. I am relieved that they will study without interruption throughout the term.

In my opinion, what GiveDirectly is doing well is giving us support in form of cash. This gave us the freedom to choose how to spend the transfer. As for me, I am so to that I am now able to pay school fees for my children much more easily than I used to do before I received money from GiveDirectly and also buy additional goats not to mention food. We have also joined the merry-go-round for savings and to meet other family's expenses such as fees and business expansion. I feel I have a helping hand through GiveDirectly.

I am a mother of 5 children and I work as a community volunteer health worker (nurse) while my husband is a casual laborer at the construction site. We currently depend on a monthly earning of  $ 15 from the volunteering work,  which is always not enough to support the entire family's basic needs such as food and fees. We have been struggling to make ends meet, and thanks to GiveDirectly we got these funds. Extreme drought within the village made food to be so expensive, we hardly had a three-a-day meal before receiving the transfers. Therefore, when I received my recent transfer, I spent $ 25 to buy 1 goat, and the remaining $ 5 I spent on food. I have 4 children who are already been enrolled in school and only 1 is yet to start school. The greatest challenge I have been experiencing is the lack of a sustainable source of income to pay my school fees, the reason why I decided to buy a goat. Goats can easily multiply within a very short time and hence make more profits. The profits that we will make from the goat-keeping business shall be used to pay school fees and meet other immediate needs of my family.

It was around 8.00 p.m. while I was preparing supper when I received a message alert. When I checked and realized that I had received money as was promised by GiveDirectly, I felt so happy and grateful.

There is a big difference because the transfer has started to transform my life. Paying the school fees helped reduce my financial burdens and made my daughter report back to school and study with less struggle. In addition, by buying food, we enjoyed nutritious meals that helped improve our health.

I am a mother of five working as a community health worker in Mudzimure village, Kilifi. I also burn and sell charcoal as my source of livelihood while my husband works as a casual laborer. I have four children who are currently in primary and secondary school. Paying my children’s school fees and feeding the family has always been a challenge due lack of a sustainable source of income. Using GiveDirectly’s transfers, I paid KES 600 school fees for one of my kids and bought food worth KES 600. I had only paid school fees for my three kids and left one pending because I did not have enough money. Restocking food and paying the school fee brought me peace of mind as we could enjoy nutritious foods, and all my children smoothly went to school without disruptions.