Even though I have not saved enough money to start a new project, I am hoping that the small savings I have been making with the village's informal savings group will help me buy an additional piece of land for my two sons. My family of seven is currently living on a small plot of land that I would like to expand in order to increase the amount of land under cultivation and, at the very least, to build a new house for my two sons, who have been sleeping at my neighbor's house.

Everyone appreciates GiveDirectly's hard work, as evidenced by the free cash transfer we received. There were no biases in the enrollment process. Everyone in the village had the opportunity to interact with the team that came to the village and gave us information about the program that was useful even in our spending decisions. 

When I received the first transfer, I was eager to invest the first portion of it in livestock, hoping to reduce my reliance on expensive milk purchases. It was unfortunate that after purchasing a cow, it became ill and had to sell it at a loss when it was severely malnourished. With my huge loss, I could not afford to spend the second transfer on a cow, so I bought two goats for $50 each. The two are simple to raise, and their milk will help my family until I can afford to buy a cow. I also spent $99 on my son's school fees as well as the necessary school equipment. Due to the current drought, I also had to purchase some food worth $80, pay $40 as part of a debt I owed at a nearby shop that has been giving us items on credit, and spend $25 on medication because I was feeling ill when I received the transfer. We formed an informal savings group with some village women, and we make deposits every two weeks. Because I have not been actively participating, I decided to put the remaining $50 into a savings account that I hope will help me buy an extra parcel of land for my two sons. I am grateful for the projects that I have been able to complete in a short period of time, and I hope to continue improving the ongoing projects.

I felt so happy the moment I received money from GiveDirectly. I saw the message early in the morning when I had just woken up and I was filled with joy. I straight away went to check for my mother whom I knew she could not read any message that was sent to her phone and when I informed her that she had too received her transfer, she was so happy. We later went and withdrew the money and implemented all the plans that we had.

The biggest difference in my life is the assets that I bought with the money. These assets means a lot to me and my family since they boost the income that I get and may also be of great help in case there is any emergencies like payment of school fees or hospital bills. I generally feel happier that I received money from GiveDirectly and my economic status have been boosted. I feel a part of people who have stable families and I am no longer afraid that I may not be able to pay school fees or meet other needs of my family.

I used KES 35000 to buy a dairy cow and used KES 8000 to buy maize for consumption and used another KES 5000 to pay school fees for my son and used another KES 3000 to seek medication for an ailment that befell me. I was left with KES 5000 that I used to buy a goat to add onto my flock. For a long time I did not have a cow of my own having bought one in the past but which accidentally died and left me with nothing to help my family. I am so happy that I was able to buy to he dairy cow that I bought and that this dairy cow shall be of great help to me in terms of boosting my finances and helping in general wellbeing of my family.