Having enhanced the lighting in my house by purchasing the solar lighting system, my goal in the coming year and beyond is to purchase new furniture for my house. Currently, my house does not have enough furniture. Every time I have visitors, I am forced to borrow chairs and tables from my neighbors. To avoid this, I plan to purchase six plastic chairs and a table. These will allow me to comfortably host visitors and offer them a place to sit and rest. I am very happy with the financial support that has made my life better, and I look forward to achieving this goal to further improve our living conditions.

I am a stay-at-home mum, and my husband, who is the breadwinner of our family, is a pastor. Life before the financial support from Give Directly was very difficult because we survived on the little income my husband earned. We have three children in school: the eldest is in secondary school, while the other two are in primary school. From my recent transfers, I spent $30 to pay off a school fee debt for my son, who was almost being chased away from school due to the unpaid balance. I am glad that the payment ensured he stayed in school and was not sent home. I also spent $34 to pay a deposit for a solar lighting system consisting of four bulbs. Previously, we only had two lantern lamps to light our four-room house, which inconvenienced my children when they wanted to study at night and when I needed to cook supper. Some rooms remained in darkness, making it dangerous for the safety of my family members. I am glad that my house is now well-lit with the solar lighting system I purchased on hire purchase. Additionally, I spent $34 to finish the construction of a toilet. Before this, my family and I mostly had to go to the bushes for our needs, which was unsafe and lacked privacy. I am very happy with the progress I have made in making our lives better. I am very appreciative of the financial support that has made all this possible.

In the coming months and years, my main goal is to install a solar panel for my home. I've found one that costs about $350, which I plan to purchase using my next quarter's transfer in May. This investment will make a huge difference for my family of seven. With enough light from the solar panel, our home will be safer and more secure, especially at night. Right now, we rely on small lights that don't provide sufficient brightness, which has been challenging due to our limited income from my small business. Once the solar panel is installed, I'll have peace of mind knowing we'll have reliable lighting every night. It will also feel like I'm in Mombasa, which I imagine to be peaceful and well-lit. This project will truly transform our lives for the better.

With the quarterly transfers from GiveDirectly, I was able to finish building my toilet, spending $115 on the final touches. Before, I had started using previous transfers to build it, as we used to rely on the bush, which was risky for our health and embarrassing if someone saw us. Now, I feel relieved and safe knowing we have our toilet at home. I'm a small businesswoman selling Omena (fish) and depend mainly on my husband, who is a pastor. I'm grateful that even when it rains, I can continue my private calls under a shelter. As a mother of seven children, having these improvements brings immense comfort and security to our lives.

Since receiving the cash transfers, I've adopted a systematic way of approaching one project at a time. I utilized the previous transfers to build the pit latrine and bought a solar lighting panel. Currently, my goal is to complete the payment for the solar panel, which I acquired on credit. Following this, I plan to invest in furniture, specifically plastic chairs and a table. The existing wooden furniture has aged, leading to deterioration, and plastic furniture would mitigate this risk. Additionally, I aim to support my husband in covering the school fees for our child entering form four. The objective is to alleviate the financial burden on my husband, who has been facing challenges in meeting school fee obligations at times.

I decided to acquire a solar panel on credit as the upfront cost was quite high, approximately $400. The D-light solar lamp I previously used in my house provided light for only one room. With the new solar panel, equipped with five lamps, I can now illuminate multiple rooms and the surrounding area, significantly improving the lighting in my homestead. To ensure uninterrupted power for the month, I allocated $30 to cover the payment. Another significant project I initiated was the construction of a latrine. Previously, my family had to use the bushes, which was unhygienic and challenging. I allocated $68, topping up my savings, to complete the latrine construction. I'm delighted that it is now finished, providing a more sanitary solution for my family. The cash transfers have been instrumental in helping me acquire essential items and improve our living conditions, such as transitioning from outdoor facilities to a pit latrine and obtaining a solar lighting system. This also reduced the burden on my husband, serving as a pastor, who is the sole provider for our seven children.

Acquiring a larger solar panel to illuminate my four-room house stands as my most notable achievement. Currently, I rely on small solar-powered lamps to provide light within my residence; however, the illumination they offer is inadequate, creating challenges in achieving clear visibility during nighttime hours. To rectify this situation, I am aiming to secure a new solar panel, which comes with an estimated cost of $300. I hold optimism that with the aid of the monthly transfers, I will be able to attain this goal and significantly enhance the quality of lighting within my home.

Significant improvements have marked my life since I began benefiting from the financial support extended by Give Directly. Over the course of several years, my family and I had been compelled to resort to the nearby bushes for both short and long nature calls. This situation, however, underwent a transformative shift when I commenced receiving transfers. With a sense of purpose, I directed these funds towards the construction of a contemporary toilet facility. Presently, this toilet is fully functional, and the realization of this achievement fills me with profound contentment. In the month of July, I allocated my transfers to cover the transportation expenses for my daughter's journey from Bungoma to Kilifi, after her completion of an accounting course. This financial aid arrived during a period of economic strain, providing me with vital relief. I manage a small vegetable-selling business within the village, and I derive satisfaction from the fact that my earnings suffice to meet my day-to-day needs, including purchasing food. Although I grapple with the challenges of managing the considerable school fees for my five children, each enrolled in different educational institutions, I am genuinely appreciative of the significant assistance these stipends offer in enabling their educational pursuit and continuous learning.

My goal is to open my own kiosk where I can be selling my fish and make huge profit and provide a better life to my children and also without causing any disturbance to my brother's business. To achieve this goal, I need to create a well-structured business plan that will help me identify potential risks, competitors, financial needs and estimated profits. Moreover, I should research my target market to understand their needs and preferences so that when the need arises, I can easily meet it. Thanks to GiveDirectly for all the support I received from them.

As a hardworking mother of seven children, I know firsthand how challenging it can be to balance multiple responsibilities. However, I am determined to provide for my family in any way that I can. I currently sell fish and make a profit of $1 from my sales. I sell this fish at my brother's shop because I do not have a space to sell my fish on. The moment I received my transfers from GiveDirectly, I used $34 to pay for my child's secondary school fees.He is currently in form three and It is not always easy, especially with three children currently in school and two in college. I believe that with determination and hard work, anything and everything is possible and all my children will complete their studies with great results and without much struggle.

My aim is to take my kids to school and put a solar lighting system in my home. I already have the small Delight lights for $5 in the house; I, however, want $300 worth of solar lights for my home. The small lights are very limiting since I have to move around with them, which usually means the rest of the people within my home are left in darkness. I will be required to pay $0.5 a day for these lights, so I will be setting aside $1 a month for these payments once I have them installed to ensure my house is continually lit all year round. I also want to spend some of this money taking care of the needs of my children in college. I do not make much from the small business I run out of my brother's shop since it can only sustain basic needs. I hope to direct these transfers to the areas I told you about since I have not had much time to take care of them.

Supporting the education of our six children, two of whom are in college, has weighed so much on my husband and me. My business of selling dried sardines has barely been picking during this rainy season since most people have grown vegetables on their farms and are no longer buying from me. Besides, the little my husband makes as a pastor hardly covers anything beyond food. This is the reason we have been in serious school-fees debt. If it were not for the cash transfer, our daughter Hellen would have completed her Accountancy course while owing her institution $80. Thanks to Give Directly, I supplemented the entire transfer amount with some savings my husband and I had accumulated and cleared the deficit. As a parent, I feel fulfilled to have taken my child through college without leaving fee debts for her to raise and repay by herself. And I give all credits to Give Directly for coming through! 

I have two daughters in college and a son who joined form one this year. On the day I went to withdraw my transfer, my son was sent home for tuition fee arrears of KES 2,800. Since I never had any other savings, I opted to give him KES 2,800 for him to proceed with his studies. I am so excited and grateful to GiveDirectly for that help. The financial greatly came to my aid. I did not have money then, and without the transfer, I do not know how I would have helped the situation. I only rely on small business that does not generate adequate income to support my family. Similarly, my husband does not have an income, he does irregular casual work.

By considering helping the needy in society, GiveDirectly does so well in making a physical visitation to every household during enrollment. As a result of the transfer, we the beneficiaries have been cushioned from hunger. Those who could not afford food at first, have been able to buy food with ease. At first, we were hard-pressed because our income was low and we could not afford food due to lack of funds. There is nothing that GiveDirectly does not do well.

Peasant farming has been my main source of income since I married. As a result, my family's necessities have been met by the farm's produce, so my husband's wage successfully supports the education of our five children. Because he is a pastor at one of Taita-Taveta's small churches, my husband does not make a lot of money. Since the beginning of the year, my family's requirements have outstripped his income, and we have been unable to meet some basic needs such as buying new clothes. Upon receiving my transfer, I immediately put it in a merry-go-round in the hopes of obtaining the initial share of KES 10,000. I am hoping that this share would come in handy because I want to acquire two goats. I aim to send the remaining KES 4,000 to my two daughters, who are currently attending college in Bungoma, for their support. I always encourage them to stay focused on their studies since this will allow them to excel in the nursing and accounting courses they are pursuing. In effect, they will be able to support me and their younger siblings.

My income is always very low and inadequate to support my daughters who are in college. As soon as I received my transfer, I felt so happy to have qualified for the transfer. Amazingly, at that hour, my household was in a celebratory mood. All my children who were at home then were moved with joy and they expressed their gratitude to GiveDirectly. Personally, I could not control my joy because I was rest assured that I would be able to support my children with a lot of ease.

The biggest difference in my life is joining a savings scheme. After I had begun receiving my transfer, I resolved to devise a means of saving part of the transfer. I therefore opted to join a savings plan (table banking). I look forward to saving more so that by the end of the year, I shall be able to get money sufficient for building a pit latrine. The one I was previously using collapsed and now I use one belonging to a neighbour.

I used all my money to pay school fees for my one daughter who is currently in college. I have been working as a shop attendant hence my earning is little to fully support her. Although my husband works as a casual labourer, his income is always insufficient to meet all our household expenses. I am glad that currently she is doing pretty well in school. She is able to concentrate in her studies because her fee arrears have been reduced courtesy of GD transfers.