My long term goal is to become a landlord. Self sufficiency financially is my end goal , and towards that end, I intend to strive to start both a business and while at the same time, use those funds to build rental houses. Well built, yet affordable housing would be a nice start towards a real estate empire . If I could manage to convince tenants to pay Kes. 2,000 per month in rent, I could use those funds to slowly save and build bigger and better housing, while still supporting my budding business.

GiveDirectly excels at giving dignity ad respect to those who are needy , in that it allows us recipients to chose, how, when and where to use the funds as we see fit. An initiative where they had project managers, eg, if they give me funds and I choose to build, GiveDirectly could offer contractors, managed by them and who it could use the funds to pay, and help me realise the final [product. That way if funds aren't enough or the quality of work is wanting, they could guide the recipient to ensure all goes as planned and they get maximum return on the investment. I feel that one thing GiveDirectly could look into in terms of improving.

The funds from GiveDirectly were instrumental in changing the quality of life for my wife. son and myself. Prior to receiving the funds, we were living in a mad house that was far from ideal for us. When it rained the house leaked, and that in itself is enough to paint a picture of how dire things were, construction wise on the house. After receiving the funds, it was all hands on deck, and in no time we had constructed a semi permanent house with iron sheets , ending our battles with leaks whenever it rained. Further more, my 13 year old can now have early morning showers using piped water which we were able to bring to the house, thanks to said funds. It made his morning preparation to go to Maeba School, where he is in Grade 6, much more conducive to him. We are eternally great full for GiveDirectly's assistance.

It was around 6:30 PM when I was just relaxing with my family when my mobile phone started ringing continuously. I was a bit nervous and requested one of my daughters to check who it could be. She couldn't believe what she saw, it was an Mpesa message from GiveDirectly. I had finally received the cash transfers that I had anxiously been waiting for. Due to the excitement that we all had as a family, we could not afford to sleep that night. We prayed and celebrated till dawn since this felt like a miracle to us.

The biggest difference in my daily life is that the financial support empowered me to accomplish my long-time dream( the availability of fresh water in my compound ). This is for sure the best achievement and a relief for my family and I. The water will be for domestic usage, commercial purposes, and use for irrigation since I live in a semi-arid region. Initially, we used to walk for like 10KM to fetch water which was tiring. Also, my wife is old and has issues with her backbone so there is a huge relief for her. Also, I am happy that soon I will start practicing drip irrigation. I am positive that in a few months to come, I will even scale up to the large scale farming with the help of the availability of the water which has been my prayer.

I spent KES 11000 of my first transfer on buying equipment which include pipes, meters. These were basically for the connection of water pipes from the main canals to my compound. The water will however be for my domestic usage, agricultural and commercial purposes. Later on, I bought building poles iron sheets, all the necessary materials at KES 19500, and the labor charges of KES 10000. This was for the construction of a new house because the previous one was almost collapsing. With my family of four, it was so stressful because I had to seek shelter from neighbors every evening. In addition, I cleared school fees of KES 14500 for my children who are in college and secondary schools respectively.