Attending tailoring college and acquiring valuable skills has been a transformative step in my journey. I have always dreamed of owning my own sewing machine, a tool that will enable me to open a store where I can create beautiful clothes and sell materials. This vision excites me because it represents independence, creativity, and the chance to build a sustainable source of income. To make this dream a reality, I have been saving a portion of my transfers and am determined to save even more in the future to bring this goal to life. The thought of becoming self-reliant and running my own business fills me with pride and determination. Beyond my tailoring business, I have another dream close to my heart: owning a piece of land and building a home I can call my own. To achieve this, I plan to save the profits from my business and combine them with savings from future transfers. I am taking a step-by-step approach, knowing that with patience and persistence, I can gradually turn this dream into reality. I am incredibly excited about what the future holds and hopeful that all my aspirations will come to fruition. The opportunity to take these steps toward a brighter future fills me with gratitude, and I am deeply thankful for the support that has made this possible. Each day brings me closer to achieving my goals, and I could not be more optimistic about the journey ahead.

Our region is facing a very difficult time where we are being faced with drought and hunger. Now that I am living with my parents, I felt that it was important for me to help my parents with buying food, and ensuring my family has something to eat. I therefore, used $30 of my transfers to buy food for our family, bringing relief and comfort knowing that we would not go hungry. Beyond meeting immediate needs, I am working towards building a better future for myself. I am proud to have attended tailoring college and gained valuable skills, and my dream is to open my own tailoring business. To make this dream a reality, I have been saving a portion of my transfers and recently saved another $30 of my transfers with the goal of purchasing a sewing machine. This machine will be the foundation of my business, where I hope to create beautiful clothes and sell materials to support myself and my family. Health is also an important part of my journey. I had been experiencing dental issues that required attention, and I used $15 of my transfers to visit a dentist and address the problem. I am now feeling much better and incredibly relieved. Lastly, as a woman, maintaining my personal hygiene is vital to my confidence and self-care. I used the remaining $27 to purchase sanitary items, which allow me to take care of myself with dignity. I am truly grateful for the support from GiveDirectly.

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I have not yet obtained a sewing machine to start my business. Therefore, when I received my most recent transfer, I saved $30 in our merry-go-round savings group. My plan is to use my savings once they reach $150 to buy a sewing machine. Additionally, I spent $20 on food because my house was running low. I also paid school fees $15 for my brother, who was about to be sent home due to an outstanding balance. With the remaining amount, I spent $13 on clothes to ensure I look presentable. Finally, I bought a goat for $24, supplementing it with some of my other savings to meet the required amount.

Owning my own tailoring business has been a long-standing dream of mine. With the savings accumulated from my transfers, I plan to purchase a sewing machine and finally bring this dream to life. It's a venture fueled by passion especially after going to college and pursuing a tailoring course, a desire for independence, and I'm determined to make it a success. Looking ahead, I envision using the profits from my business, combined with my transfers, to invest in real estate—a piece of land on which I'll build rental houses. This represents not just a financial investment, but a step towards long-term security and stability for myself and my loved ones. The prospect of realizing these goals fills me with hope and excitement.

I've always harbored a dream of owning my own tailoring shop, a business that would not only sustain me but also fulfill my passion for creativity and entrepreneurship. To bring this dream to fruition, I've been diligently setting aside a portion of my transfers for savings. Recently, I allocated $40 from my transfers towards this goal, earmarking it for the purchase of a sewing machine, a crucial step towards realizing my aspirations. With each step I take towards my dream, I feel a sense of fulfillment and excitement and I'm grateful for the progress I've made thus far. However, amidst pursuing my own ambitions, I remain mindful of my responsibilities to my family. I set aside $20 to ensure there's food on the table, knowing that hunger should never be a worry for my loved ones. Supporting my younger brother's education is also important to me. Allocating $25 towards his transportation back to school after the holiday break reflects my commitment to his academic journey and future success. Finally, as a lady I used the remaining $17 to buy personal self-care items to help me with my day to day life.

I am currently unemployed, despite possessing tailoring skills. In an effort to utilize and enhance my abilities, I am in the process of planning and initiating my own tailoring shop. My goal is to acquire a sewing machine and essential textile materials for this venture, and I have been diligently saving my income towards achieving this objective. In addition to pursuing my entrepreneurial aspirations, I have taken on the responsibility of supporting my six siblings, who are currently enrolled in school. I aim to ensure that their education remains uninterrupted, recognizing the financial challenges faced by our parents, particularly my mother, who grapples with the burden of school fees on her modest salary as a kindergarten teacher. My plan extends beyond personal success to contribute to my family's well-being. Not only do I intend to assist in the education of my siblings, but I also believe that establishing the tailoring shop will have a positive influence on our family's financial stability.

For the past year, I have been saving my transfer with the aim of purchasing a sewing machine. As a skilled tailor, my goal is to open my own tailoring shop. To meet this objective, I have set aside $34 from my recent earnings. The main purpose of establishing the business is to provide a stable source of income that can help my mother, who has been struggling to support our family of seven with her modest earnings. In addition, I have allocated $35 to cover the admission fees and shopping expenses of my younger brother, who has recently enrolled in high school. I spent the remaining amount to purchase essential food supplies to ensure that our family remains well-nourished. I am grateful to GiveDirectly for their transformative impact on our lives. Our household has faced challenges in affording both food and school fees for my six siblings. My mother, who works as a kindergarten teacher, found it difficult to meet our needs with her limited income. Thanks to the support we received, my siblings are now attending school without the fear of food scarcity. I am also confident that once I establish my tailoring shop, I will be able to contribute significantly to our family's well-being.

Once I complete my studies, I am eager to dive into the world of tailoring. I dream of having my very own shop, where I can weave my creativity into unique clothing designs and bring my fashion ideas to reality.

I am currently in a tailoring college, which I joined last year. The moment I received my transfers, I used $20 to pay my school fees.I saved the remaining amount of $14 so that, after I complete my studies, I can easily have enough money to buy a sewing machine and materials.

My goal is to set up my own business. After I shall have completed my tailoring course, I would not like to be employed by someone else and instead, I would want to set up my own tailoring sh and be my own boss. With the transfers that I would be receiving, I would ensure that I buy livestock every month and sell them in the future to get the start-up capital of $30.

I have been planning to invest part of my transfers for my future needs. I am a student currently undertaking a tailoring course, and I would want to have my own business once I am done with the course, but with no savings or any source of income, seeing myself through this would not be an easy thing. Therefore with the transfers that I received, I managed to buy a goat for rearing worth $20 and would sell it in the future to get me the required start-up capital. With the remaining amount of $14.7, I decided to spend on food since getting money for food was also a great challenge owing to the fact that I have a large family of 8 and I was so grateful for the support.

I intend to continue saving up until I reach my goal of buying a new sewing machine and being able to start my tailoring shop. I'm hoping that the money from the business will allow me to help my parents in paying for my sibling's education expenses and to invest in goats by buying them to raise.

I am the firstborn in a family of four children. My parents are farmers as well as casual laborers at times, but this does not bring enough money to sustain us it has been difficult to raise enough cash to cover all of our home needs. After finishing my secondary education, I enrolled in a tailoring course to gain some knowledge which I completed last year. I got employed as a house-help manager afterward where I earn $50 monthly. With this, I can help my parents in providing for some basic needs. With my previous four transfers that I have been receiving, I have been saving up $20 monthly which I intend to keep saving and buy myself a sewing machine that costs $150. At the moment I have managed to save up $120. The remaining cash of $14 that is left over each month is what I have been using to buy food for my family.

GiveDirectly empowered my community tremendously. I was able to achieve the goal that I had in a short period. We are forever grateful for the unrestricted cash that uplifted our lives. The organization does wonderful work, hence I have not seen things that were not done well.

I completed a training in tailoring this year, though I was not able to pick up my certificate due to school fees arrears. This was so discouraging because it meant that I could not look for a job. It revived my hope when I was enrolled into the program because I knew that I would be able to offset school arrears, thus upon receiving my transfer, I used $20 on the arrears then thereafter; I bought foodstuffs with the remaining $10. I am relieved and grateful to have accomplished the goal that I had in a short period.

The highest amount of money I ever handled before was KES 1000 whenever my mother sent me to the shop but I have never owned such an amount of money. When I received the first transfer, at first I thought that someone had erroneously sent it to my account. I was afraid to withdraw it expecting the owner to call me so that I could send it back. I was on my way home from college so when I got home I shared the news with my mother asking her whether I should send it back. It was until she checked the message that she was informed that the money was from GiveDirectly. You can imagine how excited I was to learn that it was all mine. This was one of the happiest moments of my life.

Being the firstborn in a family of six, my mother who is the sole breadwinner has always prioritized my younger siblings whenever it comes to paying for our school fees. I am in college while the other six are still in primary school hence they have to be given first priority so that they can get to my level. In most cases, I have missed attending lessons due to huge arrears that I have always owed the college. I am glad I was able to pay for part of the arrears with the first transfer. I only owe the college KES 1500 which I will clear with the next transfer. Being able to attend lessons regularly is the biggest difference in my daily life.

We are seven children in our family. Six are still in primary school while I am in college. My mother who is the breadwinner in our family is a preschool teacher in one of the schools around, but she does not earn enough money to sustain our needs because she is not employed by the government yet. At the time when I received the first transfer, I owed the college KES 2500. I, therefore paid KES 1000 to reduce the arrears. I am glad through this, I was allowed in college. I also bought a packet of corn flour worth KES 170.