My oldest son started secondary school this year after finishing primary school last year. I am really happy because the money I saved last year helped me enroll him in his new school so he can keep studying. In the future, my plan is to use the money I receive to pay for my children's school fees and make sure they have a bright future.

My life has improved a lot since I started getting money transfers. Before, I didn't earn much money working as a casual laborer selling charcoal, so it was hard for me to support my family. But now, things are different. I used some of the money I received to build a house for my oldest son. I also bought a new wooden bed for $45. My old bed was made of sisal ropes, which were difficult to repair because sisal ropes are hard to find. I paid $5 in school fees for my two youngest children, who go to primary school, so they can keep going to school without any problems. I saved $10 in a savings group, just in case I need it for school fees or emergencies. At the start of the year, I spent $10 on new clothes for my two younger children, so they look nice. With the $37 I had left, I bought packets of wheat flour, sugar, soap, and cleaning products. I'm thankful that I no longer have the same financial struggles as before. The money transfers have made a positive change in my life and my children's lives.

My mind is on acquiring a new bed. The sisal twined bed I've been using has worn out, and with no sisal plant available for replacement due to the prolonged drought, I aim to purchase a wooden bed with a suitable mattress, costing around $100. I contribute $10 every month towards a merry-go-round club to accomplish this goal. I pray that I will secure the necessary funds for this furniture.

My family relies on my nephew for provisions, as he sustains his family of three children through charcoal-making. I actively participated in a merry-go-round club that I joined when I started receiving cash transfers, contributing $10 each month. Over the past three transfers, I have saved a total of $30. My goal is to utilize my share of the cash to purchase a wooden bed. Currently, I am using a sisal-twined bed with deteriorating ropes. Securing sisal for a new bed has become challenging due to the plant's scarcity from the prolonged drought. This is why I want to obtain a wooden bed instead. Additionally, I set aside $48 for household expenses, covering items like toiletries and food. Allocating $15, I had half an acre of my land plowed in preparation for planting, and I'm pleased that the maize plants are now in the flowering stage. I also invested $3 in purchasing a chicken for rearing. Clearing outstanding school debts for my two children before the term ended was essential, and I used $6 for this purpose.

My goal is to invest in goats for rearing as they will help me generate more wealth as they reproduce. With a substantial herd of goats, I will have the opportunity to sell some and support the education of my three children, who are all still in primary school. I am grateful for the progress I have already made in my rearing journey, as I currently have 7 goats, two of which I acquired through previous transfers. Being a widow with no one else to support my children's educational needs, I am confident that this venture of goat rearing will prove to be a valuable source of income and stability for our family.

As a widow, I am the sole provider for my three children, and there is no one else to depend on. While I occasionally engage in charcoal burning, I decided to focus on farming recently due to the ongoing rains. As I have not yet harvested, I usually spend the cash transfers on school fees and food for my family. From the recent transfer, I allocated $14 to pay school fees for my two children in primary school so that they would continue studying without frequent interruptions to collect tuition fees. I also saved $10 through a merry-go-round group, which I believe will be beneficial in supporting my children's education in the future. In a recent turn of receiving funds from the contribution group, I utilized the money for my son's tuition fees and built a one-room structure for him. This was an incredible transformation that could have otherwise been impossible were it not for the cash transfers. I spent the remaining amount to buy maize flour and prepare meals for my children.

In the upcoming years, I wish to have built a new house for my grade eight son, Baraka. As he grows, he needs his private space, which my house cannot provide. Meanwhile, he occupies his elder brother’s house, who stays in Mombasa with his family and could visit anytime, forcing Baraka to seek alternative shelter. I feel like my son is suffering and the only solution is to construct a new one-room house, made of mud walls and a tin roof. Other than the house, I plan on saving for his education for when he will be joining high school next year. 

Caring for my three children, as a widow, always weighs heavily on me. To get by, I make charcoal, which earns too little to fulfill my family's needs. Given my lack of a consistent source of income, I normally budget the cash transfers to cover the most critical household expenses: tuition and food. So,  I spent $10 from each of the last three cash transfers to pay my children's school tuition so they may study uninterrupted. Additionally, I spent $14 on food to ensure that my family never went hungry; I'm delighted we haven't lacked meals since.  Following that, I put $10 into my savings at a self-help group, which I intend to utilize to finance my children's education in the future.

I'll start setting aside some cash each month for my son's tuition moving ahead. My son Baraka is currently in his last year of primary school and will move on to secondary school the following year. It will be better if I start saving for him now because his school tuition expenses for the following year will be more expensive. I have been caring for our five children since my spouse passed away more than five years ago. It has not been simple because my income from the charcoal enterprise is insufficient to meet their demands. Due to my inability to pay his tuition, our first child left elementary school, but fortunately, our second child was sponsored by a group that covers all of his educational costs. I will be able to enroll Baraka in secondary school once I start saving early. Two more are still in lower primary school.

I was generally thrilled after I realized that I GiveDirectly had sent out the transactions especially because I really wanted to settle tuition fee for three of my children. My oldest son had already spent two days home due to the fact that I hadn't paid for the fees, so I ended up paying KES 760 and then for the rest of my children I paid KES 800. I happen to still have the balance on me which is KES 1,880 which I plan to spend a nutrition especially because food has been a challenge. I have plans to mostly spend it on about seven packets of maize flour, preferably two kilograms of beans and sardines.

Give Directly alleviates difficulties in our families, including hunger, by sending us unconditional cash transfers. Furthermore, the money has enabled the realization of previously unattainable goals. I am especially confident that the transfers will allow me to actualize my dream of owning a large herd of goats. I do not see anything wrong with the way the organization is run.

When my husband passed away, the responsibility of providing for the family was automatically transferred to me. Since I was unemployed, charcoal burning became the most convenient way for me to raise funds for household expenses. However, because of the scarcity of trees and the low market demand for the product, the earnings I make from this hustle are highly unreliable and meager. I can only make about KES 1,200 in three weeks, which barely covers my food expenses. As a result, hunger is the most serious issue in my family. That is why I used KES 1,000 from the transfer to buy food to last a few days while I waited for the charcoal I had prepared to be ready. I saved the remaining KES 2,000 through a self-help ground in my compound.   The plan is to cultivate around KES 8,000 from the group next month in order to secure at least three goats. When these animals reproduce and grow, I plan to sell them to raise funds for my three primary school children.

My children and I were starving that morning because we had not eaten anything the night before due to a lack of funds. When I confirmed receipt of the transfer, tears of joy streamed down my cheeks. We would at least have food for the day.

Prior to the transfer, my family was constantly running out of food. We would go to bed hungry at least once a week because we did not have enough money to buy food. However, since I received the transfer, my family has never gone hungry or skipped a meal.

I rely on charcoal burning to provide for my family's basic needs.  I make at most KES 1,200 per month from selling two sacks of charcoal, which is hardly enough to buy food for last a week. This makes hunger the most serious issue in my household. I prioritized the transfer to buy food and spent KES 700 on it to ensure there was enough to eat for the next week.  My son also had an outstanding school fee balance that needed to be paid before he could sit for his end-of-term exams. For that reason, I transferred KES 270 to his school. I saved the rest of the money through a self-help group. The plan is to withdraw a lump sum at the end of the year to help provide for the family and alleviate our hardships.