With the support from GiveDirectly, I plan to start by reinforcing my home. Our mud-wall house has served us well, but the powerful winds in our area often threaten its stability. I yearn to add strong pillars to fortify the walls, ensuring my family is safe and secure, no matter how fierce the weather. By strengthening our house, I am also laying the groundwork for a better life, one where we can focus on education, health, and opportunities for growth without the constant worry of our home being vulnerable. This year and beyond, I am committed to building not just a stronger house, but a stronger future for my family.

With the recent three transfers, I chose to help my firstborn son build his house. He had been living in town, but now that he's back home, I feel embarrassed that he has to rely on neighbors or friends for accommodation. Wanting to alleviate this situation, I decided to support him in building the house he had already started. I spent $70 to buy building blocks because he had run out and was stuck. I felt good seeing that my son was happy as the mother stood with him. After that, I used $32 to purchase building sand. It's been rewarding to see the progress on his house, knowing that soon he will have his place to call home. This not only lifts the burden off his shoulders but also removes the shame I felt. His house is coming along nicely, and I am happy to witness his journey towards independence.

My goal is to construct a concrete skirting around my mud-walled house. Currently, I share the space with my two goats, and their horns sometimes damage the mud walls. Also, the recent rains have added to the deterioration of the walls. Since cash transfers are my primary source of income right now, I plan to invest in this project to ensure a stable and secure house. I also have a plan to start rearing chickens. I used to own a large flock, but unfortunately, it perished due to a coccidiosis outbreak in my area. However, I am confident that when I resume rearing, I will be able to take necessary preventive measures to avoid losses like I experienced in the past.

My son, who works in house construction, is the main provider for our family. There are days when he returns home empty-handed after unsuccessful workdays. Before the farming season, I used to spend most of the money on food to ensure we wouldn't go hungry. However, I'm relieved that the recent rainy season allowed us to grow food, freeing up some space in our budget to use the cash transfers for other needs. This shift has enabled me to focus on my goal of constructing concrete skirting around my mud-walled house. Currently, I share the space with my two goats, and sometimes they damage the mud walls with their horns. To prepare for the construction exercise, I used the money, amounting to $102, from the previous three cash transfers to buy bricks and sand in preparation for the exercise. I am very grateful for this progress and the support provided.

Once the cash transfers cease in five years, my goal is to have built a concrete skirting around my mud-walled house. I currently share the space with my two goats, and sometimes they damage the mud walls with their horns. This issue could be prevented with concrete skirting. Also, the recent rains have added to the deterioration. Since the cash transfers are my primary source of income right now, I plan to invest in this project. Having a stable house will provide me with greater peace of mind in the future.

My two sons are the main breadwinners in the family. They work as casual laborers in house construction and one of them works in a garage to provide food and support their children's education. There are days when they return home empty-handed after unsuccessful workdays. Before the planting season began, this often forced us to rely on food credit or even go to bed hungry. However, I'm relieved that the recent rainy season allowed us to grow our food, freeing up some space in our budget to use the cash transfers for other needs. I used $40 to buy a goat and $12 for five chickens. The cost of buying goats has been increasing, but I'm grateful that the cash transfers have made it possible for me to own some. I understand that in the future, after the cash transfers stop, I can sell these goats to contribute to household expenses like food, instead of depending solely on my sons. I also spent $7 to buy a pair of ‘khanga’ because my previous clothing had worn out from repeated use. Additionally, before our harvest, we experienced hunger in our household, so I spent $43 to buy food that sustained my family until the crops were ready.

My goal is to invest more in livestock rearing and poultry farming as a means of livelihood to reduce the financial burdens in my household. I am incredibly grateful for the previous cash transfers, as they have allowed me to acquire two goats. By owning this livestock, I will accumulate enough wealth that will help my family's living conditions. I decided to take this lane of investment because crop farming has been disappointing for the last three years.

Upon getting the recent transfer, I opted to use $30 to purchase a second. This is a long-term investment and serves as security for my family in the future because they have a ready market and they can be converted to monetary value if the need arises. Since goats have a short span breeding period, I am optimistic about having a large flock soon. For the remaining $4, I bought two 2kg packets of maize flour for my family to get some food.

After the transfers cease in five years' time, I would never wish to go back to entirely depending on my son for my needs. My aim is to rear livestock and poultry as a form of future investment. Though a bigger part of my transfers is consumed by food, I intend to start saving for these animals. I would be happy if I acquired 5 hens and two goats by the end of the year through cash transfers. 

Being the family’s breadwinner, my son does house construction tasks to put food on the table and support the education of his three children. Since getting such jobs in the village is a tussle, sometimes he comes home empty-handed, which forces us to obtain food on credit from the shop. Therefore, this puts me in constant debt at the shop, which is always lifted through these cash transfers. From the recent cash transfers, I spent $14 to repay the debt and opened the room to continue obtaining food on credit. I used $20 to buy a goat. I intend to let it reproduce so, grow the herd, and accumulate wealth that I could use to raise funds in the future. In December, I supported my son in his house construction project by giving him $20 to buy building materials and used the rest on food. From the cash I received in November, I settled a $28 debt at the shop and acquired more food with the remaining amount. 

I am extremely grateful for the generosity that I have seen so far with the Organization especially because it has made a significant change into my life. For example I managed to pay tuition for my granddaughter and she could resume school and then on top of it all our nutrition is definitely paramount which has been made capable with the money.

At the time I was receiving the funds my granddaughter had actually been out of school for almost a fortnight and unfortunately the parents had no money to help her ensure that she could resume. I felt guilty about it seeing her at home every day so I ended up using KES 2,000 of my money to pay for her tuition. I ended up remaining with a balance of KES 1,000 and unfortunately I had also take some items on loan at the neighborhood still because I we were almost starving so I ended up using that money to repay the debt.

I was sitting outside my house under the shade conversing with my daughter-in-law. My phone rang loudly and upon checking, I realized I had received a text message. I handed over the phone to my daughter-in-law, who informed me I had received my first transfer. Wow! I was surprised, and I broadly smiled in happiness.

Paying my debts using the money from my transfer has made a tremendous difference in my life. I felt terrible and feared for my life too. I could not raise the amount to pay back those I owed because of my poor financial status. It feels great that I paid off the debts and mended the deteriorating relationship with friends.

My husband passes away fifteen years ago and I fully depend on my son to cater to my needs. He works as a casual laborer on construction sites, selling charcoal and fetching water for other people. These jobs pay very little and often ran out of money to buy food and other essential items. To cope with this, I have incurred debts by buying food on credit, which has made me lose friends. Therefore, when I received my first transfer, I paid off debts accumulating to KES 500. Paying the debts handed me an opportunity to mend the lost friendship with my friends after failing to repay their money on time. I bought food worth KES 700 for the family and help ease the burden my son was going through of feeding the family through thick and thin.