I have been having dreams of becoming a livestock farmer, and so I started venturing into it using some of my previous transfers and this makes me happy as I see myself grow. My plan for this year and beyond is to keep on educating my children and to continue buying additional chicken and goats. To achieve this, I intend to keep on saving some of my transfers in our local savings group so that once they mature, I may use some of the money to invest in livestock. I am hopeful these animals will multiply and increase in number and value so that in the future I may be able to sell them and use the proceeds to take care of my family as well as take care of my children's education. This venture aims at establishing a sustainable source of income that I will be able to rely on in the future so that once this program comes to an end, I won't be left empty-handed and vulnerable but elevated from where I was before. I'm truly grateful to GiveDirectly for the financial support, as it has been instrumental in uplifting me financially and enabling me to pursue this endeavor.

With five children in school, paying their school fees is mandatory to ensure that they continue with their studies. The transfers from GiveDirectly have been of very good help to me and my family, and recently I used $30 of my transfers to pay school fees for my children, ensuring that they would not be returned home to collect unpaid fees but instead concentrate with their studies. To add on this, I also spent another $4 to buy them shoes that they could wear to school since they did not have any. Consequently, with the current drought that has struck our region, causing our farms to produce very little to nothing, leaving us with no food in our homes, I had to spend $33 to buy food for my family so that we would not go hungry. I also have been saving a portion of my transfers, and recently I saved $30 in our savings group so that once it matures I may use the money to buy some livestock as well as pay school fees for my children. I have a dream of becoming a livestock farmer, and achieving it will be very satisfying as it will help me in the future to take care of my family. Lastly, I spent the remaining $5 to buy some chickens, hoping that they will mature and increase in number and achieve the dream of livestock farming. I am very grateful for the assistance that GiveDirectly is giving us, as it is giving me a way of achieving my dreams.

Having begun poultry rearing, I'm now looking to save in our merry-go-round to expand our venture by purchasing additional chicken and goats. Once they multiply, my plan is to sell some of them to generate income for my children's school fees and other essential family needs. This strategy aims to establish a sustainable income stream for our family's future stability and well-being. I'm highly optimistic about achieving this goal in the coming year and beyond. I'm truly grateful to GiveDirectly for the financial support, as it has been instrumental in uplifting me financially and enabling me to pursue this endeavor.

I have five school-going children and a toddler at home. Previously, I earned a living by burning and selling charcoal, but due to limited tree availability and restrictions from landowners, this has become increasingly challenging. To support our family, my spouse also engages in charcoal burning and selling, and we also sell chickens. When I received my transfer, I allocated $74 to pay school fees, ensuring that my children no longer face being sent home for fee balances, which was a frequent issue before. The remaining $28 was spent on food for my children, as we have no other reliable source of income. These transfers have brought immense happiness to our family, allowing my children to live a more fulfilling and stable life. I am deeply grateful for the support, as it has significantly relieved our financial burden and enabled us to provide for our family's basic needs.

My hopes for the coming year is securing a better future for my family. A significant portion of the funds is earmarked for ensuring that my children's education remains uninterrupted; I am determined to save diligently so that school fees will never be a cause for concern. My other plan is to revive my pastry business, hence a steady source of income. I'm happy with the plans Givedirectly has enabled us to have.

GiveDirectly cash transfer brought a wave of relief to our family. With my five children still in school, I spent $54 on buying new school uniforms and essential school supplies. The previous ones were worn out and torn, a testament to the financial hardships we've been facing. Following the school expenses, I dedicated $23 to buy food and other household necessities. Ever since my husband lost his job, he's been herding cattle at home, and I've been earning a modest income from burning charcoal making it so hard to afford our household's basic needs. With the importance of saving for emergencies, I decided to join a Merry-go-round, contributing $15. This newfound financial stability allows us to plan for unexpected situations and gives us a sense of security. Lastly, I set aside $10 to buy clothes for myself and all my children. It had been so long since I treated myself to a dress, and the joy on my children's faces when they received new clothes was priceless. Despite the challenges, my family is now more content, grateful, and united, thanks to the monthly transfers.

I faced significant challenges in covering the educational expenses of my five children until I joined this program. Initially, I had six children, and I am immensely relieved that, thanks to the program's support, one of them successfully completed high school. Now, I have five children remaining, and my primary goal is to ensure their academic success. Without a job or any source of income to rely on, I heavily depend on the assistance provided through this program. My main objective is to consistently pay their school fees, thereby preventing any disruptions in their education. I firmly believe that by the end of this program, my children will have made significant progress in their educational journey.

I spent $50 from the recent transfers to cover the school fees for my five children who are currently enrolled in school. I'm grateful that the financial assistance has prevented them from being sent home as they were in the past. Previously, they would face temporary suspensions because I couldn't meet the required payments on time. I now have peace of mind knowing that I have ample time to prepare for the upcoming term's fees. Witnessing my children continue their education without financial struggles brings me immense joy. In addition to paying their fees, I also spent $24 on purchasing new school uniforms for all of them, as their previous uniforms were worn out and shabby. This not only ensures they look presentable but also boosts their confidence and comfort as they pursue their academic goals. Beyond supporting my children's education, I also set aside $30 in our local savings group with the goal of accumulating a substantial amount by year-end. These savings will serve as the foundation for starting a meaningful project. I plan to invest in livestock, such as goats and poultry and explore other investment opportunities, like opening a shop. Lastly, I used the remaining funds to purchase essential food items like sugar and vegetables for my family, as well as household items that were previously lacking.

I hawk wheat pastries as a way of making an income. This is the only source of income I have and it is usually not so sufficient. I am currently making savings in my local savings group where I aim to get to a sufficient amount that I may buy animals. I believe that when I have goats or chicken I can sell them to solve my money problems at a time. I hope to buy more animals which will grow in number and become a good emergency fund.

I have five school going children with 4 in primary school and 1 in secondary school. I have been using the transfers to settle their school fees balances. I split the amounts depending on who has the highest debt but my child in secondary school usually ends up requiring so much for school fees. . In April I spent $10 in chool fees, in March I spent $20 and similarly in May. I use the money for food to as well as saving in my local savings group. In March I spent $4 in the local savings group,April I spent $10 and in May I spent $5. For food I spent $10 in March and 414 in April. In may I spent $9 to buy more things for my business.

My goal is to start a business of vending vegetables and fruits to earn an income. I have been saving part of the money in our local merry-go-round since last year, for the purpose of starting a small business that will generate some income. I have five children who all look to me for their basic needs like food and school fees. I used to sell charcoal for a living but currently, drought has hit us badly, and I do not have any income to rely on. Starting this business will ease the burden of buying food and paying fees through the profit that I will be earning.

My husband and I both undertake occasional labor, burning wood and making charcoal. By selling the charcoal in the market, we make a living. The money we make from selling charcoal is very little and insufficient to meet all of my family's needs (buying food, clothes, and paying school fees). I used some of the money I receive in transfers to purchase food. From the month of September to the month of December, I spent $54 on food purchases. I'm grateful for the financial assistance, as it allows us to purchase enough food now that the drought prevents us from using our 4 acres of land for farming. I also paid $40 in school fees for my five children, who are all in primary school. The limited funds we have prevent us from covering all of our children's tuition at once. Now that we pay our children's school fees in installments after receiving the money from the transfers, I am appreciative that my kids are rarely sent home. I spent $20 on clothes for my five kids during the blissful month of December. I haven't bought clothes for my kids in a while because I could hardly save enough money to do so. They were so happy throughout the holiday season because of getting new clothes. Last but not least, I invested $6 in two hens. I'm hoping they'll start reproducing soon, which would double my investment and allow me to make a respectable profit after I sell some.

In my opinion, GiveDirectly did very well by giving us cash as a form of aid. The cash aspect was very helpful to me and to everyone else since different people have different needs and hence each person can make independent decision on how to spend the money. I am personally very happy to have received the transfer and for the fact that the money has not only helped me feed my family but also pay school fees for my children in a much more comfortable manner. On the other hand, I do not think that there is anything that GiveDirectly does not do well. Everything to me was just perfectly done by the organization.

My husband and I have been engaging in charcoal selling business as a source of livelihood for the longest time. This business does not fetch that much but things were better before droughts set in and distabilized everything. It is very hard to find trees that can help us make charcoal that we will in turn sell. We are therefore forced to dig out root remains of trees in an effort to make charcoal. This is a rather hard excercise that drains ones energies. In one week, we can only manage to fill two sacks of charcoal which we are able to sell at a maximum price of $8. This is too little compared to the current to economic times and the amount of effort that be we put in place to see this happen. My husband has been helping me out with this business alongside taking care of his livestock. When I received the most recent transfer, my children had been sent home for school fees and I divided the first $10 among the four of them. I was so happy that the money came at a timely manner and helped me settle my children in school. I took another $10 and saved it through our regular merry go round contribution and the amount that remained of $10 was used to buy food and other basic household needs for our family. I am so happy that my husband and I are both beneficiaries in this program and this makes it quite easy for us to plan on how we can divide roles and ensure the success of our family.

I had not known that GiveDirectly's program was very genuine. Just like other community members, I did not put my hope on it because I thought it was a scam. When I received my transfer, I felt super excited. At first, I could not believe my eyes that it was a true promise. Because it was at night and I was almost retiring to bed, I could not share my happiness with my best friend who kept on encouraging me to be hopeful. I highly appreciate the effort put in place by GiveDirectly.

With the transfer, I managed to pay off school fees for my son. It had been a struggle that I had to bear many times. Courtesy of the transfers, I have felt a big financial relief in terms of raising fees and buying food for my family. As a result, I have been able to focus on my casual jobs to continue to support my family. I am grateful to GiveDirectly for the such timely help.

My son is in the fifth grade right now. He had been sent home prior to the time transfers were sent because I still owed school fees. I chose to spend KES 500 on his school fees as soon as I received my transfers. I saved KES 1,000 in a merry go round to work on my long-term goals, such as building a house. Finally, because I did not have better clothes, I spent KES 600 on a new set of clothes, and the rest went toward food. I am glad I now have nice clothes that I can wear whenever there's a function without having to borrow from the neighbors.