The goals that I did not have or prioritise with the first transfer were buying a bed and a mattress, as well as settling my two children's school fees arrears because the first goal was to build a bigger and better house. I also wanted to buy some livestock but there is a very bad drought which is causing the death of so many livestock currently, so that plan is pending subject to the current state of climate.

Everything that GiveDirectly does is good and actually very great which I am very grateful for. It is doing everything right, and there is none that I can cite as something not done well by GiveDirectly.

I saved a huge part of the transfer with a Savings Sacco which was KES9000 because the current state of drought is too risky to get livestock and yet I do not want to end up spending the money I intend to get livestock on any other thing. This is because livestock to us is an investment that we can always turn to whenever we are faced with a financial challenge. I also spent KES3000 on school fees for my two children because I want them to get a good education since that will be giving them the ability to get employment which will, in turn, enable them to look after me in the future when I am older and unable to actively look after myself.

It was around 8:30 in the morning, when I was from the dam then a message notification popped in. I decided to ask my helper to check who had sent the message at that particular hour. After checking he realized that it was an Mpesa message from GiveDirectly. I was extremely happy and I wish you could see how I reacted. I still recall the day as if it was yesterday since it is a memorable moment in my life.

For all those years my family has been living a stressful and sorrowful life. We used to shelter under a tiny house that was in a very pathetic condition. It had old roofings that were filled with holes. The walls had even bigger cracks, someone from outside could clearly see what was inside the house. This used to embarrass me a lot and I couldn't wait to one day put this desperate situation to an end. Since I was the only breadwinner who solely depended on the charcoal business, and earned (KES 500) in a day, my dreams of owning a decent house were like a dream that would never come true. With the five family members that God blessed me with, we could at times seek shelter from friends and relatives who were also tired of hosting us every now and then. However, Give Directly brought my hopes back. After receiving the money, building a modern house was my first priority. I don't regret this decision ever, no amount of words can explain how peaceful my life is. I regained my self-esteem since we no longer get sarcastic comments from our neighbors and relatives. May God bless you and your future generations.

I spent part of my first transfer on buying eighteen pieces of iron sheets which cost KES 13500, building poles at KES 5000, nails, timber, and threads at a total of KES 3000 with a labor cost of KES 8000. This was all for the purpose of constructing a new house because the previous one was not in good condition at all. With my five family members, some of us had to seek shelter from friends every evening. Also, I purchased four goats at a total of KES 16000, which now serve as assets that I can also count, whenever an emergency arises. Later on, I cleared the fee arrears of KES 1000 and bought new school uniforms for my two children who are in the nearby primary schools. With the amount of money that had remained, I opted to buy foodstuffs for my family that would at least last for three weeks.