Since I started receiving transfers from GD, I have realised a significant improvement in my financial life. This is because I now have regular income unlike before when I used to rely on income from casual work which was not even reliable. I used to struggle to get an income and as a result, I used to beg a lot but since I started a business with part of my transfers, I have a reliable source of income from the business. I feel things are moving on well from my end because of the transfers.

My new goal, for now, is to ensure we have enough food in the house during this time. We do not know how long the situation with the virus will take us. For this, I have decided to stock enough food in the house to sustain us for uncertain times.

I spent my transfers on buying food for the family. Since we are approaching hard times with the virus in the country, the business has gone down and profits are not as before. The Government has issued restrictions on our movements which affects our income through the business. This is why I have decided to stock food so that we can have enough during this time without risking our lives outside the house.

Receiving these transfers allowed me to have my own source of income in the form of a firewood business that I started when I joined the program. This business has been a blessing to my family because I can now comfortably provide for my family without struggling too much. Before I became part of the project, I depended on casual domestic jobs that required me to walk a long distance each day to a nearby estate because I could not afford the fare which was very tiring. With my new business close by, I do not have to strain as much as I did before and I have more time to take care of my family.

I have a firewood point where I sell firewood to the neighbourhood. My husband and I are currently running this business together because he does not have any source of income as well. The new goal that I have at the moment is to open another firewood point that can be managed by husband so that we can have an extra source of income.

I had not paid my rent for the month because I had to prioritize paying my children's school fees and providing for their school requirements. When I received my most recent transfer, I used most of it to pay the rent as I had promised my landlord that I would pay him before the end of the month then spent the rest on foodstuff and other household requirements.

I am very grateful for GD for financial support. I was not doing well financially and I would struggle to ensure we meet our daily needs. In most cases, I would go to work at construction sites just to ensure we had food and other basic needs in my house. Being a mother, it was a bit struggle to get something to do because most of the jobs there were always set aside for the men. I would have to depend on luck to get what to do. This is why when I received my transfers, I decided to start a business to be my source of income. I am glad I no longer depend on my fellow man to meet my needs. The little I get on a daily basis has helped me make a big step in my life. I know in the future, I will be where I want to be which is a wholesale business from the retail business I have now.

I would still want to continue investing in the business by adding more stock. I am determined to ensure I grow my business to a wholesale level. Retail level is not doing well and the income is not much. I would want to have maximum profit from the business so that I can provide a better future for my family.

I spent my transfer on boosting my firewood business by adding more stock. The business was not doing well and it is my main source of income currently. I would want to develop the business to grow to a wholesale business because I will be able to earn more income than the amount I earn now as a retail owner. The income will help me provide for my family well and ensure we meet all the needs in time and comfortably.

I used to depend on domestic casual jobs before GD came, which were irregular and paid very little. It was tough because what I earned would only help in buying food and all the household expenses were left to my husband who struggled to make our lives comfortable. I was able to start my own business after I started receiving the transfers which makes me more money now daily than I would ever earn in a week then. I am happy that I can now support my husband financially and even have more to save which was not so possible before.

Now that I am earning a better income from the new firewood business that I started using GD transfers, I want to save as much as possible so that I can eventually be able to buy a motorcycle. Before this can happen though, I need to clear the loan I took from a Sacco to add to what I had saved from GD transfers to be able to set up the business, after which I can focus on the motorcycle which I will use to deliver firewood to my customers and even hire out for transportation services at a fee.

A few months after I started receiving these transfers, I decided to quit my previous domestic jobs I did for a living and started a firewood business. The business is doing so great but I still want to expand it, therefore most of my transfers are still used to bring in more stock. This month, most of the money I received was used to buy more firewood stock and the remaining amount spent on foodstuff and other household needs.

My goal is to open up a firewood business here in Mathare. This is quite a viable business here in Mathare and it also requires quite a high amount of capital is to begin it.

The biggest difference in my daily life is that my children can stay in school without being sent home for school fees and I no longer have to accrue debts for rent. I now earn an income from my business, as well as the monthly transfers that I am currently receiving from my business.

I spent my most recent transfers to begin a green grocer business. I used to run this same business in the year 2016, but it collapsed because the needs in my household exceeded what the business was making. My husband was not employed at that time and we depended on the business entirely. We could not add more stock to this business after utilizing the proceeds for our needs, and so the business collapsed. I have been involved with laundry jobs since then. I re-opened this business after receiving my first transfers last year, 2018, in November. I currently sell commodities such as kale, tomatoes, onions and fruits such as mangoes and oranges. My business is doing well so far and I am able to sustain my family sufficiently.

It was at 9:00 AM, and I was on my way to Eastleigh estate to find any available laundry work for that day. I was to meet a group member of mine so that we walk together to Eastleigh. When we met, she asked me if I had received my transfers, I was surprised as I had not checked my phone since morning on that day. I checked my phone and I saw the message. I was very happy and I started planning how I would re-open my business.