Initially, I had plans of renovating my house, but things have become quite difficult and so I had to shift my priorities. The drought and hunger affecting our region has made life challenging for many of us. I used to collect building poles from the forest and sell them to people in my community who were constructing homes. But with the current hunger crisis, people are more focused on providing food for their families, leaving me with fewer customers for the building poles. This has reduced my income, and now I solely rely on the transfers from GiveDirectly. For the coming year and beyond, I plan to use a portion of these transfers to continue paying school fees for my children and buy food for my family. Additionally, where possible, I intend to invest in chickens, hoping they will multiply and grow in value. My hope is that when my children need school fees, I can sell some of the chickens to cover their costs and ensure they continue with their education. I’m truly grateful for the support from GiveDirectly, especially during these difficult times.

I have four children in school, and right now, my main focus is ensuring their educational needs are met. Unfortunately, I do not have a stable job to rely on. I used to do casual work, helping people gather building poles from the forest for house construction. But with the ongoing hunger crisis in our region, most people in the community are prioritizing food and education over building, which has drastically reduced my work opportunities. As a result, the transfers from GiveDirectly have become my most reliable source of income. Recently, I used $87 from these transfers to pay for my children's school fees, making sure they can continue their studies. I am incredibly grateful for this support because, without it, I truly do not know how I would manage to keep my children in school. With the remaining $15, I bought food to prevent my family from going hungry amidst the drought and hunger affecting our community. I am so thankful for the help from GiveDirectly, and I pray they continue the amazing work they are doing. May God bless them.

My goal for the coming year is to upgrade my grass-thatched house to one with an iron roof. This has been a long-time dream, but I have not been able to achieve it due to pressing responsibilities like paying school fees and buying food for my family. I plan to start setting aside a part of my transfers to help me reach this goal. Having an iron-roofed house will ensure my family's safety and improve our living conditions. I am happy with the progress I have made so far and look forward to the future with optimism, knowing that I can continue to grow and succeed with the support I receive.

I sell wood, and my wife raises livestock to support our eight children. Our business faced difficulties because of the poor economy, which led to a lack of orders and made it hard for us to provide food and pay school fees. I am really happy that our situation improved significantly once we started receiving transfers. The steady financial support helped us cover school fees and meet our basic needs. From the transfers I received, I allocated $72 to settle a pending debt for school fees, which was necessary before our children could resume their classes. I spent the remaining $30 to buy food for my family, as we had run low and did not get a good harvest in the previous season. GiveDirectly has been a source of hope for my family, and I am deeply grateful for the support I have received over the years.

My main goal for the upcoming year and beyond is to concentrate on finishing the construction of my house. Right now, it's still a work in progress, and I'm aiming to acquire around 14 pieces of iron sheets to complete it. Currently, I'm living in a temporary shelter since the previous one collapsed. It's been tough living in uncertainty, but I'm determined to see this through and create a stable home for myself and my loved ones. With every piece of iron sheet, I'm one step closer to achieving that dream. I believe that once my house is complete, it will bring a sense of security and stability that I've been longing for, making all the effort and hard work worth it in the end.

I have been relying on cutting and selling building poles to make ends meet, but the income never seemed to be enough to cover our needs, especially my children's education. However, with the recent cash transfer, a weight lifted off my shoulders. Investing $84 in paying the school fees for my five children brought immense relief. Knowing they are receiving an education without the burden of fees weighing them down fills me with pride and gratitude. The transformation in our lives since the cash transfer began is undeniable, and for the first time, I feel a sense of stability and hope for the future. Recognizing the need for diversification, I invested $20 in purchasing chickens to rear in our compound. These birds serve as valuable assets, offering a safety net in times of financial crisis. Now, alongside the uncertain income from selling poles, I have a more stable source of revenue. The sense of security that comes with knowing I have resources to fall back on is invaluable, and it fills me with optimism for the future.

In the coming year and beyond, I aspire to complete the construction of the house I started three months ago. Progress has been slow due to financial constraints, including the cost of food. My job of cutting and selling building poles could barely support basic needs let alone the construction process. To finalize the construction, I estimate that I need around 14 pieces of iron sheets. I plan to utilize some of the cash transfers, where possible, to purchase these building materials and expedite the completion of my house.

Typically, I rely on cutting building poles and selling them to provide for my wife and seven children. However, the income from these sales is limited, and I can only get orders thrice a month, generating at most $60. This is insufficient to meet household needs like food, making it challenging to provide daily meals for my children. Fortunately, over the last three months, the cash transfers have significantly supported me in putting food on the table for my family. I allocated $77 to buy food, reducing the frequency of my family missing meals from almost a week to at most two days a month. Additionally, I invested $15 in purchasing a goat and $10 in acquiring two hens, to rear these livestock. I am confident that when the cash transfers end in the coming years, the wealth created through owning livestock will enable me to provide for my family.

I wish to replace the current roof of my house, which is made of palm leaves. Over time, these leaves deteriorate and allow water to seep in whenever it rains, causing dampness inside the house. I would be happy to switch to a more durable and reliable tin roof. For this renovation, I estimate that I will need around 14 pieces of iron sheets, which would cost approximately $140. This upgrade will protect my family from rain and other weather elements, ensuring that our home remains dry and safe. However, the cost of the iron sheets is beyond my current financial means, as I rely on casual labor for a livelihood. I hope that the cash transfers will allow me to accomplish this goal.

After receiving the cash transfer, my priority was to settle the outstanding tuition fees for my five children at their school. I paid $20 towards their fees, which had accumulated debts and had resulted in them being sent home from school. I cannot explain the relief I felt when I made the payment, and I thanked God for the timely assistance. With some of the remaining money, I decided to boost my chicken-rearing venture. I bought two hens for $8, adding to the 14 hens I already have. I plan to allow them to breed and increase their numbers, which will enable me to sell them later and use the earnings to support my children's education. I am delighted to see that some of the chickens I previously bought have already started breeding, and this gives me hope for the future. I used some of the remaining money to buy body oil for my children. I do casual jobs like cutting building poles, and although I earn around $35 per month, it is not enough to cover all our household expenses. However, the cash transfers have been a blessing, providing vital support for my family's needs. I used some of the remaining money to buy body oil for my children.

I currently live in a house with a makuti roof. It is a small single-roomed house, and it is in terrible condition. It has been around for the past couple of years. My goal is to consider building an iron-roofed house. I, therefore, intend to purchase iron sheets that will enable me to build a considerably large and strong house as I continue to receive my transfer. The makuti roofed house is not resilient since it deteriorates more quickly and is costly to maintain.

I am a father of five children. Immediately after I received my recent transfer, I spent $20 on paying their school fees since they are school-going. They had fee arrears then though I could not offset it on my own because I rely on selling firewood to raise money for my family of ten members. I am glad that they are advancing well with their studies nowadays. Because we had insufficient food, I spent $14 on food that lasted us for a week. I am glad that it relieved me from the burden and stress of raising money to support the family.

My mind is currently on building a new two-room, mud-walled, and tin-roofed house for my wife and seven children. This is because our current structure is in poor condition, and it may crumble anytime from strong winds. The project will cost approximately $300. In the short run, my plan is to start assembling the construction materials like iron sheets and building poles through the next cash transfers. Honestly, nothing would make me happier than bringing the project to completion by early next year.

I cannot express enough how grateful I am to Give Directly for sending me money every month. Though the amount may appear little to others, to me it reduces the strain of meeting my household's financial obligations. By supplementing the little money I make from selling building sticks, the transfers help cover a greater share of the most pressing needs. For instance, I used $ 20 from the most recent transfer to pay school fees for my four children, who had missed class 10 times in two months due to a lack of funds. In addition, my family (wife and five children) had gone to bed hungry the day before getting the money and I spent $10 on food. You can imagine how happy and relieved I am when my children cheerfully leave for school after having eaten. I am a contented father! Since all of my greater demands had been met, I used the remaining $4 to purchase a hen to bring my flock to six. My ambition is to raise these animals and sell them in the future to support my family.

I do not have any reliable source of income therefore, I resort to making and selling charcoal. I do this to raise at least some little income for supporting my children. I have a family of 6, four children, my spouse, and I. When I received the transfer, I spent KES 2,000 on buying five hens. I opted for the purchase of hens because from them, I will not only be able to get some eggs for my family's consumption but also raise additional income when my chicks mature. I can sell them to meet my family's needs in terms of paying school fees for my school-going children.

In my opinion, GiveDirectly by all standards does well in reaching out to all the category of a people that in many instances are forgotten. It penetrates deep into the villages where those who live there are under abject poverty. By enrolling such a needy community in its program, many have begun to witness a major improvement in their lifestyle. For instance, those who never had a house, are beginning to build while those who have struggles to obtain food are currently assured of food that can last them at least 2 weeks.

The parcel of land in which I built my house is not mine. For some period, I had been bothered on what to do to acquire my own piece of land. As soon as I got my second transfer, I talked to the landowner who was willing to sell it to me at KES 50,000. His terms of payment were flexible because he accepted a monthly pay of KES 4,000. With the recent transfer, I topped up KES 1,000 and made a down payment of KES 4,000. I am so glad that what I had been longing for has already been initiated and in the next 12 months, I shall be a landowner.

I was in the forest cutting trees as my usual norm of my work.It was around 11am when my phone beeped and as usual I was anxious to know where the message came from. No sooner had I set my eyes to the message than I saw the mpesa message which made my heart beat fast with excitement, I stopped what I was doing and rushed home to share the good news with my wife.On arrival my wife was happy she had received the same message as well so we sat down and decided on how to spend the cash and my wife took my son with him to withdraw both our cash.I was so happy that I didn't even go back to work that particular day.

The biggest difference in my life since I started receiving the transfers is I am able to comfortably provide for my family through the funds.Currently my work is tiring and on the maximum I only earn KES 350 which is not enough for food and education. GiveDirectly has made things easier because with my wife getting the funds as well we are able to plan on our basic needs with or without my income.

My work entails cutting of wood and selling them.I have five children but only two are in school.I am expected to pay 2600 for their school fees per term hence as soon as I got my transfer I paid KES 500 for them not to be sent home.I took the remaining KES 670 and bought food for my family.