My short-term goal is to build a new house, I already bought land, and hopefully, by September I would have saved and built a house. Also, my long-term goal is to save and make sure my child is not sent away from school and finishes his education at the university level.

The organization calls me to confirm if I have received the transfer which is good because sometimes I do not even notice the money has been deposited due to phone charging. They also did a good thing by giving us the money with no strings attached.

Before receiving the transfer, I was selling vegetables around the village, I would walk for miles every day selling them, and I would get $20 a week and spend it to buy food and clothing for my two children. I separated from my husband and I am the only caregiver. Life has been tough and most times my child is sent away from school because of school fees arrears. My house had also collapsed, the roof was made of palm leaves, and most was invested with ants so whenever it rained we would stay awake until the rain stops. Receiving this money has enabled me to buy land spent $250 on the first transfer and the same amount on the second transfer repaired my roof, stocked my business with $60, and bought two goats at $60.

I was with my family at around 7:40 PM when we were taking a meal when I heard my phone vibrating continuously. I decided to check where the messages were coming from and I was surprised to learn that it was an Mpesa message from GiveDirectly. We honestly couldn't hold our joy as a family and I remember how we had to celebrate till dawn.

The biggest difference in my daily life is that the financial transfers have empowered me to own livestock( the dairy cow and goat). It has been my dream to have them since they are the most valuable assets with numerous benefits. Also, they can thrive so well in my region because the climate is favourable. I however purchased them purposely for my two children's education journey. They are now in grade two, in primary school and I felt there is still a long way to go for them to graduate and grab jobs. Being a single parent who depends on low-paying jobs, I wouldn't be able to pay for their fees once they transition to secondary schools and colleges. As time goes by, the cows and goats will have multiplied. I now have peace of mind and hopeful that my children's life will be brighter courtesy of GiveDirectly.

I spent KES 19000 of my first cash transfer on buying a dairy cow and a goat. For so many years, I have been longing to own them but I couldn't afford them since they were relatively expensive. I, therefore, opted for them because they have so many benefits( milk production) as compared to other domestic animals. Later on, I used KES 15000 of the cash to buy a piece of land( half an acre). For years, I have been staying at my maternal home and I felt there was a need to have my compound since my family is growing. In addition, I bought a mattress which cost KES 4500 which was to replace the old beddings that I have been using. With the remaining cash, I bought food for my two family members.