The main goal that I have in life is to start a big business mainly a retail shop. The business that I currently run is too tiresome as it involves a lot of walking and the proceeds are not that much. Before opening a retail shop, I would first want to make sure that I see my two sons through college. After this, I believe they will be in a good position to continue supporting themselves to achieve their goals in life. Starting a retail shop has always been my ultimate goal since aside from getting enough time to rest, I will be able to meet most of our needs on time.

From my most recent transfers, I used $30 to pay school fees for my son who is in college after topping up some amount. In addition to this, I used $60 to pay fee balance for my son who sat for his KCSE last year. I settled on this because we needed his result slip but he could not be given without clearing the fee arrears. I am glad that with the transfers, he was not only able to clear his fee arrears but also, apply for a vacancy in college on time. From the remaining amount, I spent $8 on food and $4 to pay off some of the debts that I had. I depend on a small business of selling local tooth brush to people and the proceeds are usually not that much. With the transfers from GiveDirectly, we are able to pay off most of our bills.

I aspire to build my own house after residing in my son's house for the past six years due to the unfortunate collapse of my previous residence. Additionally, I am considering opening a retail stop to sell household goods since our village has a limited number of such shops. This venture would not only help lower my expenses but also generate an income. Furthermore, I intend to send my other child to college, as he has been home for more than five years due to financial constraints that prevented me from affording both of their education.

I'm grateful that I was able to cover my son's school fees with the August transfer of $34 topping it up with some savings.He's my youngest child, and in just a few months, he'll be taking his final high school exams. I'm working hard to clear his outstanding school fees, hoping that we won't have any debts once he completes his high school education. I run a small business where I sell traditional toothbrushes made from plants, and I earn approximately $30 per day. Thanks to these additional funds from Givedirectly, paying for his education is no longer the challenging task it once was. We have high hopes that he will continue with his education in college and eventually become self-sufficient in the future.

My primary goal is to build a house. Four years ago, my previous house collapsed during a strong windstorm, leading me to move into my son's house temporarily. He is currently pursuing his education and only returns home during the holidays, which works for my convenience for now. However, I face challenges when it comes to accommodating visitors or finding a suitable space for them as the house only has one room. Therefore, I want to construct a three-room house that can cater to the needs of my family and provide a comfortable living environment. In addition to the house, I aspire to invest in livestock such as goats and cows. I believe that owning livestock will contribute to the overall financial stability of my household.

Upon receiving the cash transfers, I prioritize paying the school fees for my child, Karisa, in form four. I usually allocate $20 from the transfers to gradually reduce the outstanding debt from the previous academic years. Unlike before the cash program, am happy that my child remains in school throughout without disruptions to collecting tuition fees. Engaging in casual jobs in house construction and selling chewing sticks only help me to provide food for the family and pay rent for Karisa. I also have another child who had to drop out of school in form three two years ago due to financial difficulties in covering his school fees. He now aspires to attend a mechanic college and I hope to use the cash transfers for his tuition. I spent the remaining amount to buy food for the family, and to buy myself time until when I would earn money from my casual tasks.

My current goal at the moment is to see my son complete his secondary education by ensuring that I pay for his school fees promptly. Afterward, I intend to build a decent house that will accommodate my family comfortably since the one that we are currently staying in is not in good condition.

I have been struggling to pay school fees for my one child who is currently in form four. I am the sole breadwinner in my family since my wife does not have a job. I have been doing menial jobs as a source of income, but it is not enough to cater to our basic needs. With my previous three transfers, I have been using $30 monthly to pay for my sons’ school fees and the remaining $4 to buy food for the family.

GiveDirectly promotes well being of community members. It does well by giving unconditional cash transfers, thus we can prioritize our expenditure based on our pressing needs. As a result of the transfer, I paid off part of the fee arrears my son had. Even though I struggle to figure out how to buy a new house, I have some peace of mind. I am also hopeful that my son will continue to pursue his studies. In our village, people are happy with its mechanisms to enhance security by embracing Mpesa payment. It also does frequent outreach, hence in constant contact with us through regular follow-ups. Lastly, there is nothing that GiveDirectly does not do well.

I am a father of two, and my elder son Karisa is currently in form three. He is a bright and focused boy. Unfortunately, since I rely on low-paying casual jobs, I always struggle to raise his school fees. Sadly, his fee arrears had accumulated to $210, a situation that subjected me to worries and a lack of peace. Immediately after I received my transfer, I spent the whole of it to pay part of my son's fees, and for the past month, he was able to focus on his studies. I am so grateful to GiveDirectly for its kind support.

I received a text message at 8 pm when I was arriving home from Mombasa. I had spent the whole day hawking some toothbrushes and earned KES 100 profit. When I checked the message, I was very surprised yet thrilled. I did not expect to receive such an amount of money. I broke the good news to my family members and requested my son to go withdraw the full amount and buy some food to consume that night.

Paying school fees arrears for my son is the biggest difference the transfer has made in my life. With my poor financial income, I struggled a lot to pay school fees, prompting the school principal to often send him home. Because of the disruptions, his performance has been hugely affected. I am glad that he is back in school continuing with his learning.

I am the sole breadwinner of my family (wife and two children), working as a casual laborer. Often I build people’s houses and sell toothbrushes (from plants). I have faced financial challenges which are attributed to the scarcity of jobs. It forced my younger son to drop out of school because I could not raise the required school fees. I earn very little from casual jobs (KES 200 per day), which is only enough to buy food for the family. Immediately after I received my first transfer, I paid the school fee arrears worth KES 600 for my elder son so he would go back to school. Besides paying the school fees arrears, I bought food for the family. I was under much pressure to provide for the family since they had not eaten for two days.