One morning when I woke up, I saw a message on my phone showing I had received money from GiveDirectly, and I couldn’t believe it at first—I had to read it twice to be sure! I felt this wave of happiness wash over me, and the first thing I did was tell my wife, who broke into a big smile as soon as I shared the news. She was just as excited as I was because, finally, we could begin working on the house we’d been dreaming about for so long. It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off our shoulders, and at that moment, we knew things were about to change for the better.

Before receiving the cash transfer, life was really tough. We were living hand to mouth, and as a cook at a nearby school, my earnings were barely enough to get by. Providing for my family felt like a constant struggle—some days, we couldn’t even afford a proper meal and had to skip it altogether. It was heartbreaking, especially knowing that my son’s education was also at risk because we couldn’t keep up with the school fees. After getting the money from GiveDirectly, everything changed. I was able to buy food items in bulk that lasted us over a month, which lifted such a huge weight off my shoulders. The money that we would have spent on food has now gone toward paying for my son's school fees, ensuring his education continues uninterrupted. We feel more at peace and happier as a family now—there’s less stress, more time to connect, and a renewed sense of hope for the future

When I received the cash transfer, I first bought five bags of cement for $42. I had already bought iron sheets and window frames earlier, so getting the cement felt like real progress toward building our house. For now, my wife, two children, and I live in a cramped single room, so this step gave me hope that we are closer to having a home of our own. Building has been my dream for a long time, and every purchase brings me closer to it. Next, I spent $50 on food because we had run out of basic supplies at home. It was such a relief to stock up the kitchen and know that my family would have enough to eat for a while. There’s nothing harder than watching your children go hungry. With the cash, I could buy everything we needed, and it gave us a bit of breathing room as we plan for the future. I used another $50 to buy clothes for my family and two plastic chairs since we didn’t have proper seats. We had been sitting on broken, worn-out chairs, so even something simple like new plastic chairs made a big difference in our home. I spent the remaining amount clearing the compound and putting up a temporary fence to secure the area. This was part of my preparation for the next phase of construction when I receive the next transfer. Each small step feels like progress, and I'm determined to keep moving forward.