We have been relieving ourselves in the bushes or sometimes going to our friends' houses because we did not have our own pit latrine. This has been very embarrassing for me, especially when I have visitors or when I want to relieve myself at night. Because of this, I have decided that for the coming months, I will start saving a portion of my monthly cash transfers and my earnings from my casual jobs to build my own pit latrine. By the end of this year, I want to make this dream a reality, and I am confident it will happen because I am tired of the embarrassment. This will also prevent us from relying on my friends' latrines, which has been my goal for a long time.

For a long time, I lived in an environment that was not good at all, especially because I had to share a small space with my four teenage children. I was unhappy, as this situation affected our well-being. I was denying them their privacy. However, with the transfers I received and my small savings from other sources, I was able to purchase building materials to construct a new house, allowing my children to have the old one. I am happy to have realized this dream; we now live comfortably with privacy, and I feel it has restored my dignity as a father. However, I still had a debt from the labour charges for the construction of the house. I have not been able to pay it off since we agreed with the manager that I would pay in instalments, as I do not have a reliable job. Over the past three months, I was able to pay them $102 for their labour, and now I feel relieved. Before, I lacked peace of mind because they would ask for their money all the time. Now that I have settled the debt and have a new house, I feel a great sense of relief.

With four growing children, my plan is to complete building my house and then construct a separate house for my boys. I believe it is inappropriate for teenage boys to share a home with their parents. To achieve this, I intend to use the transfers I receive from GiveDirectly, as well as funds from other sources, to purchase building materials and construct the house for my sons. Once the house is built, I will work hard to acquire beds and mattresses to ensure we can all sleep comfortably. Additionally, I have a piece of land that I would like to develop into rental properties. This will serve as a source of future income for my family, helping us to meet our needs. I am planning to utilize the transfers from GiveDirectly, along with earnings from my various hustles, to make this investment a reality. This plan brings me great joy, as it will provide stability and financial security for my family in the years to come

As a father of four children, their well-being is my top priority. Unfortunately, my family's living situation had become wanting, as our house was on the verge of collapsing. Determined to provide a safe and secure living environment for my children, I made the decision to use $68 from my GiveDirectly transfers to purchase building materials and complete the construction of a new two-room house for us that I had previously started building. I am pleased with the progress we have made, and I am hopeful that we will be able to move into the new house soon. Ensuring my children's education is also a crucial concern of mine. One of my children was in dire need of a new school uniform, as the previous one had become completely worn out. To address this, I allocated $16 from my transfers to purchase a new uniform, ensuring my child could attend school properly attired. Additionally, I recognized the importance of clearing any outstanding school fee debts to prevent my children from being turned away from their studies. I therefore used the remaining $18 from my transfers to pay off these debts, allowing my children to continue their education without interruption. I am pleased with the progress we have made, and I am hopeful that we will be able to move into the new house soon

My primary goal is to renovate my house, which was affected by heavy rains, causing it to sink and the roof to leak badly. I am happy that I have already begun the process by purchasing iron roofing sheets and I have accumulated sixteen pieces so far. With a bountiful harvest ensuring sufficient food, I plan to redirect my transfers towards completing the renovations. These repairs will not only improve my living conditions but also provide much-needed relief, as I will be able to give my family a safe and secure place to live. I truly appreciate the assistance given, as it has uplifted my living standards.

I used to work as a hotelier but unfortunately, I lost my job, leaving me unable to support my family of seven. Luckily, GiveDirectly's assistance came at the right time, when I had just relocated back to the village. I began engaging in casual labor and farming, and I am pleased to say that these transfers have greatly boosted my income. The positive changes are evident as I have successfully cultivated five acres of land, ensuring that I have sufficient food to sustain my family for many months while I focus on other income-generating activities. Furthermore, I have been able to pay my children's school fees comfortably and even secure loans with the assurance of timely repayment, thanks to consistent transfers. With the transfers, I spent $15 to buy food to prepare for Christmas festivities. Another $25 was used to pay for school fees as I had accumulated a debt for two months that needed to be settled. I then used $47 to purchase iron roofing sheets to repair my leaking house. The remaining amount was spent on buying additional food supplies for my family to supplement what we had. I am truly grateful to GiveDirectly for giving me this opportunity to better my life.

My goal is to build a decent house to replace the mud-walled structure that I constructed back in the early 2000s. I have concerns that the old house may not withstand adverse weather conditions and could potentially collapse, leaving my family without shelter. I plan to build a new house with mud walls but include concrete skirting for added durability compared to a house made entirely of mud walls. While I would prefer brick walls for even greater durability, I understand that the monthly cash transfers may not be sufficient for that, and my income from casual house construction jobs is also limited.

I hired a tractor to plow my four-acre farm for $34, using a combination of some other funds I had saved for this purpose. The timing was crucial as it had been raining in my region, and it was the right time to plant my crops. I'm delighted that the maize crops are now growing well, and we are at the weeding stage. During the same period, I also used $34 to purchase school clothes for my four children. Since I had recently harvested, I was not constrained by food expenses, and my children's clothing, especially their uniforms, had become torn. I am now happy to see them go to school in decent clothing. I also invested $34 in building a storage space for the maize I harvested last planting season. The cash transfer allowed me to address the need for proper storage, ensuring my maize remains preserved. Before I started receiving the cash transfers, my region faced drought and hunger was a significant concern. My work in house construction was insufficient to meet my family's needs. However, since the cash transfers began, and the fact that I recently harvested food, it has been easier to invest in various things, such as farming, school fees, and clothing.

I have a family of 7, and the house that we currently live in, is in a dilapidated; the roof is worn out and whenever it rained, we are always rained on. My goal is to have a better house for my family before the current one collapses on us. I, therefore, plan to spend part of my transfers on buying materials bit by bit every month so that by the end of the year, I shall have started the house construction.

The transfer that I received from GiveDirectly was of great help. I was previously doing the business of motorcycle riding in order to generate income for my family, but currently, I no longer operate in the business, getting money had been quite a nightmare a situation that forces me to look for odd jobs in the construction sites, but the situation had never been better and my wife on the other hand does also not have any income-generating activity. With the tough situation, 4 of my children were sent home to collect school fees since they still had some pending balances, but luckily GiveDirectly came to my rescue and with the transfers that I received, I managed to pay school fees worth $24 and bought food with the remaining amount of $10.70 and I was happy because my children got a chance to carry on with their studies.

In 2015 I retired from my work because of my age. I have been a faithful servant at a very beautiful hotel that used to pay me a monthly income of $100 that at least helped me cover most of my family's needs.Ever since, I have moved up and down in search of a good job but I was unable to get even one to just help me cover my expenses. I decided to join a construction site so that I can easily settle my bills. I am currently waiting to receive my retirement benefits so that I can save together with what I normally get from GiveDirectly and start my own Hotel. I have had the passion and vision of having my own hotel but due to financial constraints, I was unable. When I start my own business, I will also be able to build my family a very big house and make them have the life they desire.

I am a married man who has five children. I have two children who are currently in primary school and the others in secondary school . I happen to be the breadwinner of my family and the current work I do is construction because there are no jobs available for me to do. I usually get paid around $5 a day that is not even enough to sustain or meet all the needs of my family. The time I received my transfers, I was not doing well so I decided to top up some amount of $10 and buy my family food so that at least they would have something to eat. My children’s school fees payment were due and I paid $18 for them and I was also able to buy them ten exercise books that actually did cost $5. The remaining amount I was able to go get one chick at $2 so that I could add them to the ones that I have at home.

Helping us with money with no strings attached, especially during this period we are experiencing drought. This aid boosts us a lot

I am a chef by profession having worked in the industry for seventeen years. In 2015, I lost my job and moved back to the village and since then I have been doing casual work such as masonry. I have five children and my wife who depend on me. The masonry job does not pay much($5) a day and with the high food prices that we are currently experiencing the money only buy two packs of maize flour which is not enough for a meal. My neighbor owns a shop where I take food commodities on debt and pay them back when Givedirectly sends the transfer.

I was at home at exactly 8 pm when I received a text message on my phone. My mind was engulfed by thoughts of where to get money and buy food for my family. I was shocked beyond words when I realized I had received my first transfer after reading the message. I hurriedly walked outside the house and walked towards the Mpesa shop, where I withdrew the money and bought food for my family.

The transfer has made a vast difference in my life by helping me clear some debts I owed. This was causing me much pain, and I lacked peace of mind. After paying some of these debts, I feel confident have handed me an opportunity to mend the broken relationship with my friends.

I lost my job at the beginning of this year working at an eatery in Mombasa town. My boss passed away, and the business collapsed. There was no heir to take care of the business. It forced me to go back home where I am working manual jobs such as building houses for other people. These jobs are not daily, hence I sometimes lack money to take care of my family's essential needs (buying food, paying school fees, and buying clothes). I have a big farm, but I cannot grow crops because of the drought that has existed for over three years. When I received my first transfer, I was very. I repaid KES 1500 as part of the debts that I owed shopkeepers after buying some food on credit on days that I did not have money. Besides paying these debts, I bought food in bulk for my family and avoid them from starving.