My life is different than it would have been if I never received the transfer in that I bought a dairy cow. I depend on the casual jobs in the village and there was no other way I could get the money to buy a cow.

GiveDirectly does well by giving us money to meet our daily needs and even start different projects. I do not find anything that GiveDirectly does that is not well.

I spend my second transfer on to buy a dairy cow. I used to buy milk and it was so costly for me and the rest of the money I used it to buy building materials to build a house.

Every year in my household begins with difficulties in food provisions. This is because being, January, the many activities including the opening of schools for my children and the planting season leaves me with nothing to spend on food. But this was not the case this year as I bought two sacks of maize for food. I also bought sugar and other household items leading to a smooth beginning of the yeat with plenty of food unlike previously. The ability to have enough food in the store has allowed me to make money from doing menial jobs for use in developing my home. Now I concentrate on my own farm and take care of the cow I bought. In fact, as we are talking, I am at the crush spraying the cow to control ticks and keep her healthy. This has become more productive activities as I milk and sell it to get cash. My farm is also well done and I am looking forward to a bigger harvest than previous years. Thanks to GiveDirectly.

The message that notified me of the payment form GiveDirectly was like help from above. It proved that the dream of living a better life was now a reality. I saw myself being able to buy cow which means I would soon be able to rely on my own farm to provide for my family. I become very optimistic that I would even buy a cow.

I spent the money on paying school fees for my 4 children in primary schools. I also bought them school uniforms and bedding. The girls had outgrown the ones they had and the bedding had worn out. I also bought roofing sheets for building a house. I was living in a small hut and a leaking roof did not make any better for me and my kids. I also bought a cow worth KES 28000. I did not have a cow at all because I sold the one I had to pay for my medication when I fell sick last year. This left us with no other option other than to be buying milk for consumption at very high prices, worsening my financial problems.