Since I already have a piece of land, I would like to build a rental house and open a kiosk as well. I am planning to borrow a loan from the Chama that I recently joined. Once I succeed, I believe that I will be able to provide for my family despite our financial constraints and support my spouse in paying the school fees for our two children.

In my opinion, GiveDirectly did well by giving out cash transfers to improve my living standards. As for me, this was the best decision from them since it has brought positive impacts. Therefore, I do not see any negative things that they have done that need to be changed. 

Before the coming of GiveDirectly, I was staying in a small, semi-permanent house, which was again stuffy due to poor ventilation. Despite it being small, I had to live together with my three children, who are out of age. Thus, there was no privacy for them or me either. Also, whenever I had a visitor, it was somehow embarrassing that I had to seek shelter from my neighbours for their stay. When I received my second transfer, I resolved to build a decent and spacious house that could accommodate my children as well. I thus spent the whole amount on purchasing bricks, sand, and bags of cement and paying for labour. I am at peace now that I have a good house to stay in and can accommodate my children under one roof. Also, my properties are safe whenever it rains, unlike before, when the heavy rains would damage them since I kept them in the corridors. This was my dream, which I could not fulfil at my own cost. My spouse, being the family breadwinner, could only manage some of the basic needs and not build a home. I am grateful to GiveDirectly for enabling me to build my dream house, which has had a positive impact on my life and that of my children.

At around 8:00 p.m., I received a message notification and immediately opened it to read as I confirmed its content. I was in church at the time and couldn't tell anyone because I was not with my family members. It did not take long for my husband to call and I had to tell him. I was able to inform my husband that I had received the first transfer when he called. He was overjoyed and advised me to collaborate with our older son in aligning our plans.

We have been enjoying lighter moments in our households with better bonding over the last few months as a result of shared responsibilities and constant planning among my family members. I had been working alongside my elder son, who has proven to be excellent at planning and who is extremely respectful of both his father and me.

I spent $260 on 24 iron sheets with the intention of building a new house for my family of five. My sons have been looking for a place to sleep in the nearby school whenever we have visitors at home. I've always felt bad when my children slept in class, and I'm hoping to put an end to it by building a large house with an extra room for them. This room will not only provide them with a place to sleep, but also with plenty of space to study after school. I also spent $56 on lumber, $25 on nails and ridges, $67 on cement, and $20 on transportation. I also paid $50 in labor costs during construction, and I am relieved that the house is nearly finished. I am still responsible for paying all of the water bills as well as a portion of the labor during the completion process.