I'm a small-scale farmer. Initially, I considered opening a shop, but it seems like that won't work out as I had hoped. I'm really invested in farming to ensure a good harvest to support my family. Selling my farm produce isn't the best option because I wanted to use the income to open a shop. I've calculated the costs of opening a shop, and it's quite expensive. Now that I have children in school, the little extra income I receive goes toward supporting their education and other household needs. Farming is unpredictable, especially depending on the rains in our area. It's hard to predict whether there will be enough rain or not. Therefore, I've decided to focus on making and selling liquid soap, while also concentrating on farming to ensure we don't lack food.. I also plan to invest in local poultry farming because this project is easy to start and maintain. Once I have a good number of mature chickens, I will sell them to generate income to support my family's needs, such as paying for my children's school fees

I recently received a much-needed transfer of funds. In our area, rainfall is often scarce, so it's crucial to plant seeds in a timely manner. Since it was planting season and everyone was busy working in the farms, I decided to invest $68 in purchasing fertilizer for planting. I'm hopeful that this investment in farming will yield a good harvest when it's time for harvesting. Having enough maize means that my children will have food to eat, and it also helps in reducing expenses. With the remaining $42, I also paid my two school-going children's fees to ensure that they wouldn't be sent home for fee balances, giving them ample time to study.

I am a farmer. After harvesting, I will sell my maize and invest in chickens. Currently, I have twelve chickens. My plan is to sell them once they multiply so I can open my own shop. The problem I face as a farmer is the rain stopping, which affects our maize harvest and sales. Opening a shop is my goal for a steady income and profit. I want to sell a variety of things like sugar, salt and everything else that can be found in a shop.

I am a mother of three children, two of whom are school-going and one is not yet of age. Upon receiving my transfers, I immediately allocated $34 to ensure my two school-going children wouldn't face any hindrances. This investment guarantees their uninterrupted education. I dedicated another $34 to farming, preparing my two acres of land for farming maize. I am really praying hard so that it rains and my maize can grow and I can easily sell them to get money to meet all my needs. Finally, I wisely utilized the remaining $34 to acquire a new phone. This essential tool facilitates seamless communication with my loved ones, enhancing connectivity and convenience in my daily life.

Setting up a shop is my ultimate goal, as it would provide a comfortable platform for selling my products. With a dedicated shop, I could maintain a consistent supply of goods, leading to increased profits and ensuring my sustainability. While this remains my goal, the constraints of limited transfers have posed a challenge to its realization. Nonetheless, I remain optimistic that through diligently saving my transfers, I will eventually achieve this milestone. I am deeply grateful for the assistance I have received this far, which has propelled me towards fulfilling my dreams.

I operate a business producing and selling liquid soap to sustain my family of five, while my husband engages in occasional jobs to supplement our income. Despite our efforts, we faced considerable financial strain and struggled to cover our expenses. I am immensely thankful to GiveDirectly for their support in reviving my failed business. With their assistance, I've been able to procure essential raw materials, allowing me to resume soap production and successfully generate income. I invested $47 in acquiring raw materials which further contributed to the growth of my business, and I'm delighted to report that it is now flourishing. Additionally, $32 was allocated to settle a pressing school fees debt, ensuring our children's education remained uninterrupted. The remaining $23 was used to purchase essential household items such as food, ensuring our immediate needs were met. The aid provided by GiveDirectly has significantly eased the burden of providing for my family, and I am truly grateful for their assistance.

Until now, my husband has shouldered the financial responsibility for our family by relying on casual construction jobs. However, meeting the extensive needs of our household, including our children's school fees and food expenses, has proven to be quite a challenge. To support him and contribute to our family's financial stability, I initiated a venture to produce and sell liquid soap through the monthly transfers. Securing the initial capital to start the business was a daunting task, but I am appreciative of the fact that the transfers I've received thus far have enabled me to start and sustain this endeavour to the best of my ability. My ultimate aim is to expand this venture further by stocking different products. I plan to become a member of a savings group where I can accumulate a substantial amount, potentially even securing a loan to aid in the expansion of my business. Despite the fact that the business hasn't fully taken off, I am already noticing a positive impact on my life through the profits I've begun to generate. I can now easily cover my children's school fees and provide for their basic needs, which brings me immense satisfaction together with my family.

I currently operate a soap-making business, which has become my primary source of income. Previously, I relied on subsistence farming and had no consistent source of income. However, I eventually ventured into the production and sale of liquid soap. Capital has been a recurring challenge, but I'm thankful that whenever I receive funds, I invest in replenishing my stock of essential soap-making ingredients. In my recent transfer, I spent $96 towards restocking my business. I'm delighted that the income generated from this business allows me to comfortably provide for my family's basic needs, including food and school fees. It also enables me to support my husband, who occasionally struggles to cover our family's expenses due to the limited income he earns from casual construction jobs. Moreover, I also spent $25 to pay the school fees of my two children, ensuring their continued education and giving me ample time to prepare for the next term's expenses. Lastly, I spent $17 to purchase essential foodstuffs, ensuring that my family could enjoy daily meals without worry. Thanks to this financial assistance, our daily sustenance is now guaranteed.

By the end of this year, my plan is to establish a physical store to sell my products. Presently, I exhaust myself by going door-to-door in the village to sell detergents. It's a tiring endeavor. However, I aim to find a favorable location near the road, which will enable me to attract diverse customers. Alongside detergent sales, I intend to expand my offerings to include groceries. This diversification will increase my profit margins and contribute to my financial stability.

After enrolling into the program, I ventured into selling soap and detergents due to the economic hardships that have made relying on a single source of income difficult. Unfortunately, the harsh climatic conditions have hindered my ability to work on the farm. As a result, I often find myself using the capital I earn from running the business to meet my family's needs whenever the situation arises. Furthermore, my husband's earnings from his casual jobs in house construction are not substantial, and it takes him a considerable amount of time to secure employment and provide for the family. With the arrival of my May transfers, I decided to allocate $24 towards purchasing soap and detergent ingredients to expand my business. This decision proved to be extremely beneficial as it significantly increased my sales and allowed me to generate profits that could be utilized to support my family. Additionally, I was able to allocate $10 of the remaining funds to pay the school fees for my two children who were sent home due to outstanding fee arrears. It brought me great joy to see my children return to school and continue their education.

I plan to invest in a small-scale business where I will open a mini-shop for income generation. I currently hawk liquid soap to provide food for my family. On a good day, I can earn $2 in profits which is never enough to cater to my family’s basic needs. Beginning this February, I will save at least $5 per month of my transfers to help me start and grow the business.

A few years ago I used to run a small business where I produced homemade laundry detergent and disinfectant. Unfortunately during the pandemic I had to shut down my business because of lack of market and funds as well. Then lucky for me last year after getting enrolled into the program I got the chance to start my business again which I still happen to run till now. Therefore after I received this recent donation I ended up using KES 2,600 on buying the product that I needed to make the produce with and then I also spent KES 400 as transportation fee to and fro. I proceeded to spend the balance of KES 500 on paying tuition fee for my son so that we could finally access his results for the term. Meanwhile for the month of November and October I did a similar thing where I spent the entire money on my business because the profit helps me cater for the needs of my family.

The choice by GiveDirectly to give us monetary support perfectly solved the problems in most houses in the village. The unconditional transfers enabled us to spend on whatever we felt fit and through this, most people have improved their lives. I have seen some parents enrolling their children back to school and some opening business. On the other hand, here is nothing that the organisation is not doing right.

When I received the first transfer, my business of making detergents for sale was at the verge falling, and I am glad I was able to use the whole of the first transfer to boost it. It is an additional source of income for our household aside from the income my spouse earns from the construction work and thus, I would wish to improve it. I, therefore, spent the whole of the second transfer to purchase more chemicals for making the detergents. I am happy the business is picking, and I am able to constantly supply my customers with the products.

I felt so good and grateful to GiveDirectly as soon as I received my transfer. This was the least expected experience because I was skeptical that we would all receive our transfer. As a result, I intended to use my transfer to invest in a business that I had been longing to start in order to increase my income. That day, I was overjoyed to have received the transfer. I am overjoyed to be one of the fortunate members of the community.

Although previously my struggles were more, I am glad that courtesy of the transfer, I have been able to start up a business. The decision to venture into business had been informed by my inability to continue with a charcoal-making venture. This had been a tedious work that was mostly draining me. The business is currently doing well and it gives me hope that in a matter of time, my struggle to raise money for supporting my family. Therefore, I my thriving business is the greatest difference in my life.

My husband and I were both unemployed, so I could hardly support our family of four. I used a portion of my transfer as soon as I received it to start a business selling liquid soaps and jik. The venture cost me KES 800, and I am pleased that it is currently doing well. I am hopeful that it will be of great assistance to my family in the long run. I've been able to make KES 300 per day from the business. As the business grows, my reliance on rainfed agriculture will decrease, which will be very beneficial to us.