In the upcoming year, my main goal is to revive the grocery store that my wife used to run. I want her to have a meaningful source of income, especially during these tough times. With the little money I earn from my motorbike riding job, I have been saving gradually, and I am determined to restock the grocery store soon. It hasn't been easy, but I believe that once the store is back up and running, it will bring in much-needed income. My wife will be able to manage it while I continue working, and together, we can improve our family's financial situation. Looking ahead, I hope the grocery business will grow, providing us with stability and a brighter future.

I am a father of one, and I rely on motorbike riding to provide for my family. With the last three transfers, I carefully planned how to use them to meet our needs and make important investments. My father fell ill, and I spent $34 on his medication. I am thankful the money was available, and he received the treatment he needed to recover. After taking care of his health, I used $23 to buy food for my family, ensuring we had enough to eat and that no one went hungry. Beyond these immediate needs, I also thought about our future. I saved $30 by contributing to my merry-go-round group, where I am committed to saving $10 monthly. This will help me build up savings for any future needs. With the remaining $15, I paid a deposit for a goat, as I want to increase my investment in goat keeping. I believe this will provide additional income and security for my family in the long run.

My previous life was incredibly challenging, but thanks to GiveDirectly, I have made significant progress. Now, I have the luxury of being able to afford things like a new mattress, which was once beyond my reach and I do not struggle a lot to meet our basic needs. Looking ahead, I aim to continue growing by increasing sales in my vegetable business and upgrading my house's floor from sand to tiles. To make this possible, I will diligently save income from both my motorcycle and from my merry- go-round savings.

When my father fell ill and was rushed to the hospital with a stroke that left him unable to speak, our family pooled together to cover his medical expenses. Contributing $34 from my transfers and also some earnings as a motorcycle driver, I played my part, and thankfully he is progressing well. Despite financial strains, I have not been able to contribute to my merry-go-round. However, thanks to GiveDirectly, I spent $30 of my transfer to contribute to my merry- go-round for future uncertainties. Sleep had become a struggle on my old, uncomfortable mattress. I decided to Invest $34 in a new one, that has made waking up easier and feeling more rested. With the remaining $4, I bought food for my family that day.

I have a motorcycle which is my bread and butter, my wife has a small vegetable stall where she sells vegetables fruits and fish from. She is still at the starting stages and although I had hoped that my earnings from my Motorcycle business would contribute towards boosting her business it has note been the case. I am saving so as I can heave enough to take a shop and expand the business to her being able to have her own shop rather than the stall which needs her to load and offload it daily.

Givedirectly have come as a big reliever for our family struggles. My sister who had moved to Town some years back recently got sick, we cannot seem to explain what it was as she complained of constant headaches, so she sought treatment and went to hospital. The treatment she underwent was intense and it took about $350 in total. we as a family contributed to get her out of hospital and back home and I contributed $30 from my transfers. She is now at home recuperating. I also saved some money to my savings group about $30, I got clothes for my wife, my child and myself for the holidays at $12.

My current priority is to establish a shop in my village, selling essential goods. I have been diligently saving $10 each month, and I'm optimistic that by the start of the upcoming year, I will have gathered enough funds to kick start this endeavor. Receiving these transfers brings me immense joy because they have significantly enhanced the quality of my life.

I rely on selling and delivering charcoal to clients in neighboring towns, and my business has been thriving. However, a few months ago, I faced a significant setback when my entire stock was stolen. I have been on the path to recovery, and I'm pleased to share that, thanks to these transfers, I have managed to save enough to reestablish my business. From the received transfers, I allocated $53 to replenish my stock, aiming to stabilize the business. Another $34 was used to purchase food and other household essentials, as our food reserves were low due to a poor harvest during the last season. The remaining $15 was directed towards covering my brother's medical expenses and treatment, as he was involved in an accident.

My goal is to start a retail shop business. With a large family of 14, my wife and I have been struggling to make ends meet, but it had never been that easy owing to the fact that we do not have a reliable source of income. I would want to have another income-generating activity to boost the little income that we get. I would require a capital of $30 and my plan is therefore to continue saving part of my monthly transfers so that by the start of next year, I shall have started the business. By establishing a retail shop, I aim to provide for my family's needs more comfortably and create a stable and sustainable source of income for the future.

I received the transfers at a time when I was in great financial need. We were in a desperate situation, struggling to make ends meet. With a large family of 14, and relying on charcoal burning as our main source of income, it was extremely challenging to provide for everyone's needs. The transfers were a true blessing because I used the most recent transfer of funds, amounting to $19.70, to purchase food as our supplies had run out. Additionally, I contributed $15 to a group savings scheme that I am part of, as the deadline for contributions had arrived. The financial support provided by GiveDirectly has made a significant difference in our lives, and I will forever be grateful for the assistance.

Despite the fact that I own a charcoal business, I believe it is insufficient to support my family. I set a goal for myself at the beginning of this year to save money in order to start a retail shop. Because my wife is a fashion designer and works at home, I believe she can manage both the shop and the tailoring business. This course will diversify our income sources, enabling us to easily meet the needs of our family. It is difficult and inconvenient to rely solely on one source of income. This was a goal I set for myself last year, but it did not come to pass.

I have been running a charcoal business. It occasionally performs well, enabling me to raise an average of $15 daily. However, its performance dropped dramatically during the month of January. I was unable to maintain adequate stock, which contributed to its poor performance. I pumped in the entire amount, $34 as soon as I confirmed my recent transfer. My transfers for the previous three months went toward purchasing food and expanding my business because those are my prioritized spending areas.

I run a business dealing with the sale of charcoal. I started this business in 2020 although it had not picked well because I did not have adequate capital for its expansion. From the time I have begun receiving my transfers, it has registered steady improvement. As soon as I received the recent transfer, I spent $15 on expanding the said business. I am glad that from it, I can always raise a net profit of about $100 every week. As a result, I find it easy to take care of my family of three; my daughter, my wife, and myself. I am so grateful, courtesy of the transfers, I am gaining economic independence.

As soon as I received the transfers this time round, I ended using KES 500 my contributing to the savings committee that I belong to. I also happen to buy and selling charcoal to different folks in different towns. So I used a part of the transfers and bought three sacks of charcoal worth KES 1,500 and later sold them each for double the price I had bought them for. Later on I used the balance I was left with which was KES 1,000 and used KES 400 in purchasing agricultural products for the farm and the rest of the money for nourishment so I bought a sack of maize weighing seventy kilograms worth 600.

In my opinion, GiveDirectly is helpful especially through the unconditional cash transfers. One can appropriately allocate the money to their needs. In the period I have interacted with GiveDirectly, I have seen nothing wrong.

For the first transfer, I paid KES 800 to the mason who was repairing my home which was damaged. The remaining KES 400, I added KES 100 and saved in the Rotating Savings and Credit Association where we contribute monthly and every 3 weeks, one of us is given some money. For the second transfer, I was needed to pay the monthly deposit in our Rotating Savings and Credit Association by 2pm on the day the transfers came in. I therefore, took KES 500 and paid. Previous to getting the transfer, my friend and I had talked about partnering to start our own business. Hence, when the transfer came in, I used KES 2500 to start our charcoal business which I aim to grow and even diversify into other businesses.

I was away from home accompanying a friend of mine in a casual job of transporting cows from Kabatheni to Mariakani.It was around 8am when we were almost to our destination and I pulled out my phone to make a phone call.I was distracted by Mpesa message which I shared with my friend, I was confused and thought had received money from a wrong number or the message was not real.I immediately transfered the amount to my other number to verify that this money was actually on my account and I was excited to see that they were actual funds.As we continued the journey my mother called me with so much joy about the funds and I confirmed that the money I received was from indeed GiveDirectly. All of a sudden my mood changed as we delivered those cows to the owner.

The biggest difference in my daily life is that I am able to have plans and goals achieved.I have been unemployed for quite some time and hustling has been my way of life.I have never planned and achieved anything before but since the funds started coming in have already repaired my house and am hoping to make a difference in my daily life.

My house has always needed some repairs and renovation.I discussed the matter with the contractor but due to financial constraints I was unable to complete the renovations .When I received my transfer I paid the contractor KES 800 and the hole on the wall was repaired .I remained with KES 400 which I added my KES 100 and paid my daily contributions of Rotating Savings and Credit Association (Merry Go Round Chama).