Recognizing the financial strain of consistently purchasing food for my family, especially during lean times when my charcoal business faces challenges, I've decided to proactively address this issue. To find a sustainable solution, I am planning to lease a quarter acre of land near the river and engage in farming through irrigation. The comprehensive farming plan includes cultivating maize, beans, green grains, and vegetables. By diversifying our crops, I aim to ensure a steady and varied supply of food for my family. The strategic location near the river allows for irrigation, mitigating the impact of erratic weather conditions and fostering a more reliable crop yield. Through this, I will provide sufficient food for daily consumption and also alleviate the financial burden associated with buying food regularly. The prospect of becoming more self-sufficient through farming brings a sense of hope and resilience to our household, promising a brighter and more secure future.

In my perspective, the organization has truly excelled in providing generous, non-conditional transfers, allowing us recipients the flexibility to address our varied needs. I am sincerely grateful for the opportunities these transfers have presented, enabling me to achieve a significant milestone that once seemed impossible. Thanks to the transfers, I can proudly declare ownership of a better house constructed with iron-sheet, a contrast to the previous muddy dwelling I used to call home. Furthermore, the joy of venturing into livestock rearing adds an element of hope and promise for a brighter future for myself and my two children. The tangible improvements in housing and the venture into livestock rearing are transformative outcomes that have been made possible through the thoughtful and impactful support of the organization. Thank you, GD.

Dependent on the charcoal burning business, my weekly income of $5 was barely enough to cover my basic needs. This worsened when the Kenyan government declared charcoal burning illegal, forcing me to curtail my activities to avoid legal repercussions. This diminished my income. Receiving the transfer offered me an opportunity for a lasting change. I used $356 to purchase a cow, three hens, and two goats, marking the beginning of a livestock-rearing project. Livestock keeping is a viable livelihood in this region, especially given the ability of these animals to thrive in a dry climate like ours. I am optimistic that their numbers will grow through reproduction, providing a sustainable source of income. I plan to sell them periodically to meet my basic needs and contribute to my children's education. With two children set to join high school for their secondary education, ensuring timely payment of their school fees is crucial to preventing any disruption in their education. Despite the challenges, including the separation from my two children and their mother due to financial constraints, I am determined to fulfill my promise of not letting their studies be affected by a lack of school fees. Allocating $16.5, I bought new clothes for myself, replacing the old ones used during special occasions. I used the remaining funds to buy enough food, ensuring that I did not go hungry, especially as my income source became more irregular.

In the future, I am hoping to have a spacious kitchen that will be able to accommodate my two children when they come back home after their mother left with them due to my poverty status which made me appear irresponsible towards my family. At the moment, I am cooking from outside where there is no shelter making it difficult to cook during the rainy season and also not appropriate for my health because it can expose me to food-related illnesses. Additionally, I would also love to venture into goat rearing, this is because goats multiply very fast thus giving a secure financial stability in the future which will also enable me to sustain my family in case they return back home.

One thing that GiveDirectly has done perfectly well is giving me unconditional cash which has empowered me to realize my potential that seemed impossible to achieve within a short period. The cash has impacted my life positively and I can happily say that I have a good semi-permanent house that I did not have before since I was languishing in poverty also I can now afford to put food on my table. In my opinion, I would appreciate it more if GiveDirectly could be cheap in promoting fruit growing in our area by buying us the seedlings and distributing them in all the households within the village, through this we will achieve economic sustainability.

When I received the second transfer from GiveDirectly, I built a house worth $327. Initially, I used to live in a muddy old house that would leak every time it rained which made my living uncomfortable and unbearable. I am so overwhelmed that I can have a decent house for myself. I also bought food costing $123 that will sustain me for a few months thus saving me all the struggles and the stress of having to think about how am going to put food on the table every single day. Having been surviving with charcoal burning and selling business which is illegal in the country, made it quite difficult to even have a visitor around and offer a cup of strong tea. I am grateful to GiveDirectly for making my life better.

Receiving my first transfers filled me with immense joy, especially since the timing was impeccable - we had been going to bed without eating or surviving on just one meal per day. The thought of being able to have full meals, even if only for a few days, brought immense happiness, particularly because we understand the hardship of going to bed hungry.

The most significant change from when we didn't have financial aid from Give Directly is that my family is now happier and healthier. Having food at home has promoted a sense of peace, satisfaction, and unity among my family members, which is a complete contrast to our previous situation.

Upon receiving my first transfers, the initial step I took was to secure ample food for the household, spending approximately $70. The second priority was to address the home renovations that were urgently needed, as our roof had some holes that required mending. I purchased iron sheets for $73, acquired posts for $15, and hired a professional for $13 to execute the repairs.