Since I have received and used all my GiveDirectly transfers as planned, God willing, I now intend to do maize farming. This is only when I get capital to plow the land and buy the required farm inputs. This will not only ensure food security for my family but also be an important income source.

In my opinion, GiveDirectly did well to give us aid in form of cash giving us a chance to choose what to spend it on. Also, the fact that every household in our village was enrolled shows there is no favoritism in GiveDirectly. Another commendable thing to note is that GiveDirectly customer care is always quick to respond well to whenever we call.

I am a mother of five; 2 boys, and three girls. I majorly rely on poultry farming to feed my family. On a good day, I can get up to KES 100 from the sale of eggs. This varies from one day to another due availability of poultry feeds. Now that my boys are already in their teenage years one is 12 and the other 14. There was a need for building them their own house. This is because according to our community customs boys at this age are considered mature. So, when GiveDirectly transfers came, I took the opportunity and used KES 41,000 on building a house for them. KES 20,000 from the first transfer was used on Ironsheets, and KES15,000 from the second transfer was used on the purchase of timber and timber frames. KES 6,000 was also used on payment of laborers. For me, crop farming has proved unreliable. This is because I only have an acre of land which is not sufficient for crop farming. Also of late maize crop has been severely damaged by the maize pandemic in our area. In addition, our place is marked by long dry spells which are not conducive for crop farming. Therefore, when GiveDirectly transfers came, I bought three 90 Kilograms bags of maize at KES 12,000 and KES 5000 was spent on other food and household items. This will not only sustain my family for a longer time but also reduce household expenditure.

The moment I received my transfer, I was at home doing the normal house chores, when I heard my phone ringing vibrating loudly, Upon checking I saw a Mpesa notification message showing that I had received money from GiveDirectly, I was overwhelmed with joy and happiness, I knew that I will be able to accomplish the goals that I had, in that, I was going to construct a house for my children, I was which I was unable to build off these years due to financial constraints. I am grateful to have received support from GiveDirectly.

The biggest difference in my life today is that I was able to prepare my land right on time before the planting season, in addition to that I was able to purchase fertilizers unlike before where I used to take them on credit so that I could pay later, My children are also excited that they would be having a spacious place to sleep on once I am done building their house, I am grateful for the support that lifted our living standards and brought so much joy and happiness in our lives.

I am a consistent farmer, we are nearing the planting season, and I needed money for early preparation of the farm so that when the rains comes, we would start planting, therefore when my transfer came I used KES 10,000. my house is small, and we are not comfortable sharing the same room with them now that they are growing, hence I saw the need of building a separate house for them so that they can have a roof over their heads, therefore I bought an iron sheet worth KES 15,000, lately, I used the remaining transfer in buying clothes and foodstuffs. I am so grateful and happy that GiveDirectly lifted my living standards.