With school-going children, my plan this year is to continue using a portion of my transfers to educate my children by paying their school fees, ensuring that they are not sent home to collect fees but stay in school and focus on their studies. I also plan to use the first batch of the pooled funds that I will receive to start a food kiosk where I will be cooking and selling food and earning some money that will help us with our daily household needs. Additionally, I will keep saving my transfers in our Merry Go Round group so that the other pooled funds that I will receive will be used to buy goats in hopes of their multiplying and increasing in number and value so that I may be able to sell them in the future and continue educating my children to higher levels. I am grateful for GiveDirectly's assistance.

I am the parent of four school-going children whose education is very important to me, and I believe it is the key to their future success. To ensure their future is secure, I spent $34 to pay for their school fees and to buy essential school supplies necessary for their continued learning. Additionally, I saved $30 in a merry-go-round group, planning to use the pooled funds that I will receive to buy goats with the hopes that they will multiply, increasing in number and value, allowing me to sell them in the future and use the proceeds to further educate my children. I also bought a chicken for $4, with the intention of it multiplying and increasing in number so that I can sell the chickens to address any pressing issues that may arise as they grow since chicken multiply faster and in greater numbers. Furthermore, I spent $24 to buy food for my family, as we had run out of supplies due to this year's unfavorable weather, which caused our crops to dry up. Unfortunately, I recently fell ill and had to go to the hospital for necessary treatment, so I spent the remaining $10 on medication. I am happy to say that I am now feeling better, and I am truly thankful for GiveDirectly, as I don’t know what I would have done without their support.

My goal for this year is to start raising goats, a promising venture that has assured profits. I plan to utilize the upcoming transfers to make this endeavor a reality. With this initiative, I'll be better equipped to cover my children's educational expenses and also provide food for my family. Having this project will give me much-needed relief and peace of mind. I am sincerely grateful for the assistance, and I don't know where I would be without your support.

My husband works selling water in Mombasa, while I tend to our livestock, supporting our family of nine. It was a struggle to afford food and school fees with his modest earnings. Thankfully, this project has significantly boosted our income. For the first time, I could afford to send my daughter to boarding school, a dream come true thanks to these transfers. Additionally, we can now comfortably provide food for our family. Out of the received transfers, $48 went towards purchasing uniforms, books, and other necessities for my daughter's schooling. Another $44 was used to buy food for my children, as we were running low. Additionally, I set aside $10 in our local savings for future needs. Being a beneficiary of this program has brought me happiness and changed our lives for the better.

In the coming months, I aspire to buy a new bed and a quality mattress to replace the worn-out bedding I've been using for several years. The current bedding no longer provides the comfort I need for a good night's sleep. My goal is to set aside a minimum of $100 for this purpose. There have been occasions when I had to resort to sleeping on the floor due to financial limitations, a situation far from my ideal. My dream is to finally have a comfortable and cozy sleeping arrangement, providing me with the restful sleep I deserve.

I joined a merry-go-round group where I typically contribute $10 each month with the goal of using the savings to invest in livestock. When it's my turn to receive the money, as we are a group of five members, I plan to use the funds to purchase livestock, particularly goats. At the moment, I only have one goat, and I intend to buy more goats to raise as assets. Additionally, I also spent $30 to cover my children's school fees. I have three children enrolled in primary school, and my primary goal is to ensure they have access to education. I'm pleased that they are attending boarding school, thanks to the monthly transfers. This arrangement makes it easier for my husband and me to pay their fees on time. My husband is engaged in casual work in town, specifically delivering water using a cart, which does not pay well. Receiving the transfers has brought a huge relief to us, and I am happy that my children's education has not been interrupted. I also received the transfer when I was preparing my farm for the planting season. To quicken this process, I spent the remaining amount on hiring a tractor to plow my acreage. I anticipate a bountiful maize harvest, which will enhance food security in my household.

My ultimate goal is to establish a stable source of income through livestock rearing. In the past, I used to raise poultry, but unfortunately, they all perished from pox disease. This was a heartbreaking event for me because I relied on selling the poultry to generate funds for our food needs. Since then, I have been unable to resume livestock rearing due to a lack of funds. However, thanks to the cash transfers, I see a future where I can build a large herd of livestock. Currently, my focus is on starting with goats, and I have already purchased three with the assistance of previous cash transfers. I am optimistic that through this venture, I will be able to enhance our financial stability and get enough money to enroll two of my children in school.

My husband sells small items like water and snacks in town to support our family. However, due to the nature of his job and limited earnings, it can sometimes be challenging for him to cover all the household expenses, including food and school fees for our three children. Fortunately, with the cash transfers I have been receiving, I can actively contribute to some of our family's needs, thereby alleviating the burden on my husband's shoulders. While our two children aged 6 and 7 currently do not attend school due to financial constraints, I remain hopeful that the cash transfers will enable me to enroll them in the future. As for now, I have been allocating $14 towards the accommodation fees of our child in grade eight and boarding school. This helps ensure that he can continue his education without any disruptions. Additionally, I allocate $10 for food expenses and save the remaining $10 through a self-help group, which allows me to build a small savings fund.

We have been using some old garments on the floor as bedding because we were unable to acquire suitable bedding due to the financial difficulties we were experiencing. Sleeping on the ground is uncomfortable and unhealthy, especially given the regular physical aches we get when we wake up in the morning. Consequently, I want to do better at sleeping this year. In order to accomplish this, I will set up money each month in order to purchase a bed, mattress, and blanket before the end of the year. After accomplishing this, hopefully, I'll start buying hens to raise and eventually sell to raise money for our family's daily expenses.

We are thankful that we were enrolled in the program because it has significantly improved our family's situation. Our family of eight depends entirely on my husband, who works as a water salesman in the town. W e lacked most of the essentials because he does not make enough money to pay for his townhouse rent and all of our necessities, including the children's school fees. I saved $30 in a savings group with the last three transfers with the goal of buying goats to raise when I get my shares. In order to alleviate the food shortage we had been experiencing, I spent $53 on food, mostly cereals enough to feed my family for a while while I paid $15 in school to pay off the amount my three primary school-age children owed the school for their tuition. I am happy that I can now contribute to taking care of our family's needs.

In my opinion, GiveDirectly did well by supporting us financially in my community. Currently, my life has transformed positively with this cash. My children can now access basic needs like food, and nice clothes and they are all in school. I do not see anything that GiveDirectly did wrong.

I saved $10 of my recent cash transfer into merry-go-round Chama in my community. I believe that the money will be of help especially when I encounter any financial crisis shortly. To add that, I paid fees for my three school-going children to avoid them being sent home regularly like before. I am now a happy parent on seeing them going to school every morning like the rest. With the remaining amount of money, I had to purchase foodstuff for my family which is comprised of eight family members.

When I first saw the Mpesa message that evening, I was moved with curiosity to determine its source since I had been longing for my transfer. Upon checking, I was moved with joy to realize that it was my transfer from GiveDirectly. I had not imagined on how these would come to pass on a day like that when I was in deep need of money. I am so glad that out of it my life has positively changed because I could with ease pay my children's school fees.

Because my main need at the time I received my transfer was to offer educational support to my children. I am happy that the transfer helped me to meet that need. I, therefore, attest that the biggest difference in my life is paying off school fees for my children. Consequently, I have been able to embark on another casual job of charcoal making to continue offering support.

My children had been sent home for school fees when I learned of my transfer. They were supposed to pay KES 700 for the examination fees. I am so grateful that the transfer assisted me in covering the fee, and my children have been attending school and doing well in their studies. Furthermore, because I did not have any money at the time, I could not buy food for the family the day before. I was able to spend KES 500 on food for my family thanks to the transfer. As a result, my burden has been lifted, allowing me to work harder.