Give Directly helps to relieve our hardships, one of which is hunger, by sending us unconditional cash transfers. I am extremely grateful for the assistance provided this far because it has dramatically improved my ability to fend for myself without overly relying on my sons. There is nothing wrong with the way Give Directly operates.

Since my husband's death, my two sons (who sell fruits and water for a living) have always borne the burden of providing for the family. They are always supportive when it comes to sending money home to buy food and other household supplies. However, when I received my transfer, they were yet to provide cash, and the household was running low on food. So I put KES 1,500 towards buying enough food to last us until their next payday. I set aside the remaining KES 1,500. I intend to use it to purchase hens for rearing. As the flock grows, so do my chances of earning enough money to help meet our basic needs, such as food and education.

Since I cannot read, I did not instantly realize that the message alert I received concerned the transfer. It was my helper who, later that day, confirmed the receipt. The delight that filled my heart at the moment is immeasurable. I am very grateful to Give Directly for holding their end of the promise and granting me the cash aid.

Having a stable source of income is very important to me. I took a chance to buy two hens from the transfer and it is the best decision that I made. Unlike before, I am more optimistic about the success of chicken keeping as an investment. I intend to promote the practice by buying more hens and feeds through the next transfers.

I rely on splitting logs and making charcoal to provide for the household needs. It is very challenging to raise enough money to meet each necessity due to the low income I earn from the activity. Before I get a customer to buy a sack of charcoal worth KES 500, I will have struggled the entire week. With the rising commodity prices, the money earned is not enough to fully cater to our needs. This is the reason I heavily depend on my two sons for provision. One owns a small fruit selling business while the other survives on casual tasks, as long as he earns something at the end of the day. To reduce their responsibility burden, I decided to rear chickens, let them multiply, and sell the produce later to obtain cash. So when I received the transfer, I used KES 600 to purchase two hens to add to the existing ones. More hens mean a bigger flock which translates to a wider income stream. I used the rest of the cash, KES 600, to buy food. I am glad that the dependence on my children for food has gradually decreased following the transfer.