In the coming years, I would like to start a farming business just within the village and in a nearby town center. I believe this will uplift my living standards since I have been depending on temporary jobs and have not been able to fend for my family on a daily basis. Therefore, I trust that this is the only business that will enable me to settle all my bills on time since it is very profitable.

In my opinion, GiveDirectly does well across the whole region because of the numerous transformations within us. The idea of offering me an unconditional cash transfer has enabled me to own assets that would have taken me years to acquire. I, therefore do not see anything that needs action, even as they move out of our village.

I spent part of my second transfer renovating my house by plastering the walls, cementing the floor, and adding one room. The previous house was a small, muddy house that could barely accommodate all three members of my family. I, therefore, felt there was a need to renovate it since some of my children used to sleep at my relatives' houses. I now feel grateful and happy since the house is spacious enough and my kids no longer have to move from one compound to another to seek shelter. Again, I bought two goats worth $80 that I will be keeping on my homestead asI hopey hope that within a short time, I will have many of them since they reproduce faster than other domestic animals. Once they multiply, I believe that I will no longer struggle with raising my children since I will be selling some and settling the matter. With the remaining amount, I have been buying food, which took us almost a month. It is now a relief to me, considering that my children have been going without meals for most of the days since I did not have a reliable source of income.

While I was in the field plowing, I received a message on my phone. Since I was not only engaged with the shamba work but also unable to read, I ignored and continued with my work till the time I went home. No sooner had I reached home than I gave out my phone to the helper to check what the message was all about. Upon checking, it was the first transfer of $550 sent to my account by GiveDirectly. My heart was filled with joy for receiving a huge sum of money that was not a loan. This happiness did not stop at the ululation stage I slaughter a chicken to celebrate the good deed of GiveDirectly.

Before getting the transfer, our major challenge at home was food. We were used to skipping lunch meals not because we were busy but because we had nothing to take. The lunch meal was a history in our home. The little we got was kept for supper as the main meal of the day. Currently, we are singing a different song. Since the time I received the transfer, we have been taking three meals a day something which was impossible before. I am very happy to see my family enjoying all the main meals of the day. This has brought peace and happiness to our family. Again, I managed to proceed with my rental house construction which was stuck. As of now, the rental house is almost ready. This could not be a walk in the park if it were not for GiveDirectly.

Since the drought has done us badly, GiveDirectly came to our rescue. When I withdrew the money the first thing I did was buy two sacks of maize for $120 to ensure that there is food security at home. Investing in rental houses is what has been my main mission. I have an incomplete three-room house specifically for rentals. The perimeter wall is still incomplete. Therefore, I used $384 to buy building sand, cement, and building blocks plus the labor charge inclusive. I am happy that the $384 covered a bigger part and I am working out to finalize the remaining part. I opted for this kind of investment because rental houses are long-term investments and do not disappoint in terms of income generation when well managed. I also bought a goat for $40 to mark the presence of GiveDirectly at home. This is because with time the goats will multiply.