I work as a mechanic in Mombasa, but my limited earnings make it challenging to support my family. I rely on my GiveDirectly transfers alongside my job income to help cover rent, purchase food, and care for my loved ones. Due to my financial circumstances, I need to explore additional ways to generate income. I've been considering animal husbandry to increase my earnings. At present, I have 5 goats and around 20 chickens, which I can sell for extra cash during financial emergencies. In the upcoming year and beyond, I plan to invest more in goat farming. My goal is to acquire additional animals so they can breed and produce even more. This venture will provide me with financial security for the future, as I can sell the animals if I face any financial challenges to support my family.

I would like to express my gratitude to GiveDirectly for the financial relief they've provided. This support has significantly eased the financial burdens I was facing. Nowadays, I can pay my rent without the constant worry of finding money. I work casual jobs assisting in mechanic work, which pays very little, making it challenging to support both myself and my family. However, since I began receiving these transfers, my life has truly improved, allowing me to support my family financially. With my recent transfer, I spent $51 on household items, as that was my decision on how to use the funds. I also used the remaining $51 to buy food for my family. The timing of this money was perfect, as we were out of food at home. I am truly grateful for this support.

I work as a mechanic in Mombasa where I earn between $2 to $5. I use this money to try and settle my rent, buy food and take care of my wife and mother. I do not make much from my work. This means I need to think about how best I can raise more money to take care of my family. I have had plans of rearing animals as a way of increasing my income. I have $15 goats and about $20 chicken. This come in handy as they can be sold to to make some extra cash for my family. I plan tho increase this animals by buying more to also allow them to breed and reproduce even more animals to ensure the success of this business.

I have a young family and Givedirectly transfers has allowed me to take care of myself and the family. My wife has been pregnant and gave birth to our first born in May. I was able to facilitate her health expenses using this cash transfers, her transport to hospital, her bill for the services rendered as she gave birth at $20. I was also able to use the cash to facilitate my transport from the city to the village to go see my newborn at $40 and I bought some clothes for $10, and some food at $5. I also was able to pay rent for my house in the city during this time at $44.

Now, looking forward, I want to build a house back in the village. The current one I have is in poor condition, with the walls damaged by rainfall, posing a risk of collapse. Therefore, I aim to construct a new house before this one completely collapses. I estimated the budget for this new house to be around $300. Since my mechanic job has not yet picked up well, I plan to save at least $5 from the cash transfers to accumulate funds that will support the house construction exercise. I hope that in the future, more opportunities arise in terms of work so that I can complete this task in no time.

I have been staying in Mombasa town for the last three months. I left the village to seek mechanic work here in town. Upon my arrival, I had to find a place to stay and pay rent for the room I intended to occupy. Coming from a village with no source of income, the cash transfers proved invaluable in covering these relocation expenses. I spent $34 on the relocation, and I am relieved that I am now well settled. The first months of my life here have been a challenge as I struggled to raise enough funds to cover the rental charges. I rely on casual jobs, and most of the time, they are scarce as I am still making connections and learning the routes. Therefore, affording rent has been a struggle to date. Consequently, I used $36 towards my two months' rent and the remaining $32 towards buying food for my sustenance here.

As I stand at the threshold of the coming year, my ambitions are crystal clear. My primary goal is to complete my course, the culmination of years of dedication and hard work. It's a significant milestone that I believe will lay the foundation for my larger dream of starting my own business. The prospect of entrepreneurship has always been a spark within me, and I'm optimistic that by next year, I'll be embarking on this exciting journey. The combination of academic knowledge and the practical skills gained from my course will be the driving force behind my business endeavors. I'm eager to see this dual dream come to fruition, navigating the intricate balance of education and entrepreneurship and ultimately shaping the future that I've envisioned for myself.

Receiving the unconditional monthly cash transfer was a lifeline for me as I navigated the challenges of pursuing a certificate course in mechanical engineering after moving to town for college. With the bulk of the transfer, I prioritized securing a place to live, promptly settling my monthly house rent fee of $16. The peace of mind that came with having a dedicated space for studying was invaluable, allowing me to focus on my coursework without the distractions of village life. It felt like a necessary investment in my education and future. With the remainder of the funds, I made sure to address another pressing concern: providing for my wife and myself. Unemployed and solely focused on my studies, I couldn't generate any income, making it difficult to meet our basic needs. Grateful for the timely assistance, I allocated $18.7 to purchase essential groceries, ensuring that my wife and I had enough to sustain ourselves. The unconditional support from the organization not only eased the financial burden but also allowed me to concentrate on my academic pursuits, knowing that my immediate needs were being met. I can't express enough gratitude for the positive impact this support has had on my life during this critical juncture.

My mother collects tree stumps and sells charcoal. This job does not make much since most people in our area do it their isn't many stumps and dead trees to use for charcoal meaning her earnings are much smaller than is required for our needs. I have a sister still in school and myself and her depend on mother for our school needs. I had halted my childhood ambition of pursuing a certificate mechanical engineering until Givedirectly started sending the cash transfers. I started school shortly after and haven't looked back yet. I want this transfers to get me to the end of the course so that I am able to get my papers and come our employable for the market.

I am a student in a college in Changamwe getting skills in Mechanical engineering. The school does not provide accommodation hence I got a place close by where I stay to access school. The place I rented out costs $20 per month in rent and I also need to buy food which can take me through the month. When I receive my monthly transfers, I spend $20 to ensure I have secured my accommodation and the rest of the cash $14 goes into shopping for flour and vegetables to take me through the month.

This year my main aim to is to learn how to be a good mechanic so I can open my own workshop. I am hoping to use my GD transfers to pay my rent for the house I took for $20 and the rest of the transfer $14 will go into buying food for me. I was working as a motorcycle driver employed by someone and I would get like $5 per day and I would be required to pay $4 to my employer to ensure that I had the motorcycle still but this wasn't making me a sufficient income. My projection is that with the skills of being a car mechanic and starting my own place, I will be able to make a good income that will be sufficient for me.

I used my December transfers for the festivities, I used $24 money to buy wheat flour, maize flour, and cooking oil. I bought a chicken at $4.5 to be eaten during the festivities. I also used the money $15 to buy clothes for my family to wear during the festivities. I used my January transfers in addition to my savings to buy a goat at $35. I used my February transfers to pay rent for the house that I had taken in Mombasa after I moved to go learn how to do mechanic work at $20 and I have been using the rest to buy food for myslef.

I currently work as a motorcycle taxi driver, though I use a rented bike that I must pay for every day. My goal for the coming year is to be able to start a business of selling livestock. I intend to achieve this goal by saving $12 per month from my transfer. I believe that having a steady source of income will significantly improve my life.

My retail business is the main source of income for our family.  Since I am the oldest and live with my mother and three siblings, I take care of all of their requirements because my mother is elderly and has no other means of support. I set aside $32.5 when I received the most recent transfer, which I will use to pay for a goat for raising and then use the money to grow my current business. The remaining $62 I used to purchase food that would last us for a while. I owe the organization for this because I do not struggle anymore to raise money for our household's maintenance.

In my opinion, GiveDirectly did well in coming up with the unconditional cash transfer program. Sending cash directly to eligible individuals was one of the best things. I do not see anything that it does not do well.

I spent most of my recent transfer to start a small kiosk business were I am selling foodstuffs like sugar, spaghetti and doughnuts. This is my reliable source of income for myself since I am jobless after completing college early this year where I studied a technical course in electrical. In addition, I spent KES 1050 to start poultry rearing by purchasing 3 hens. I intend to sell them at a profit when they fully grow to earn income to support my shop business. I am grateful for the transfer, I did not imagine that I would achieve such development very soon.

Immediately after I learned that my transfer had been sent, I felt extremely nice and happy. It was in the evening at around 3 pm and I was in the grazing field looking after our goats. Though I had been expecting the transfers because I had been enrolled in the program, in my mind I was always battling with the idea. How could one start receiving such kind of support as soon as they finish up their studies? This at times made me have some doubts that perhaps that could have been an empty promise. Having confirmed the Mpesa message, my doubts ceased and my joy multiplied. I had never felt such highly motivated ever since in my life. Thanks to GiveDirectly for such kind support.

From the time I received my transfer, I have made positive strides in my life. I am so glad that currently, I own 5 hens courtesy of the GiveDirectly transfers. This is a big achievement because I had never imagined that this could be so. As a result, I look forward to starting raising goats before the year ends and this will greatly contribute to a positive change in my way of life. I shall therefore be independent and self-reliant, a situation I had been longing for all through my life. Thanks to GiveDirectly for considering me to be among the beneficiaries.

I recently complete my O'level and I have not yet succeeded in raising the fee for my college education. When I confirmed the receipt of my transfer, I opted to spend KES 1,900 on initiating a poultry farming project. This had been my desire throughout the period I was in school. Unfortunately, it could not be executed because I did not have any source of income. Poultry farming is a lucrative venture with a quick return within three to four months. In addition, I spent KES 500 on buying food to supplement what we had as a family.