My life has greatly changed after receiving this money because I have been able to replace my bedding with a new mattress and a bed. Had it not been GiveDirectly, then I would still be sleeping on the old and worn-out mats which were not comfortable. At least I can now sleep well on my new bedding. I also have a pair of oxen to help me in my farming. I am glad that I will not be hiring from anyone during the planting season like I used to do before, instead, I will be hiring them at a fee and earn some money.

In my opinion, GiveDirectly has done well in promoting our living standards by giving us the transfers. Through the money, we were able to fulfil our financial needs effectively like providing daily food to our families and building new houses. We now access to better shelter unlike before. I do not see anything that GiveDirectly does not do well.

I spent part of my second transfer on purchasing a bull. My aim was to have a complete pair of oxen to aid me in my farming. Having oxen will help in boosting farming because it enables us to do farming timely and at a low cost. I also spent a portion of the transfer to pay medication expenses for my stepson who has had been bedridden for quite some time. Apart from all these, I spent the remaining amount to buy daily foodstuffs for my family and paying for other household expenses.

Since I am a farmer I have been longing to have my own oxen for a long period of time but due to my financial status, I could not afford it. Through the first transfer that I received, I now own my own oxen which have now changed my life completely and different in many ways. First, they are now helping me in ploughing my farm, whereby they take less time and compared to when I used to do the exercise by myself. Secondly, I can now prepare my farm earlier than I used to do which is making me hopeful since I am assured my farming products shall increase. Thirdly I will be hiring them to my friends at a fee and get an income. The money will help me meet my family basic needs with ease without straining.

It was around 3:00 am when my phone vibrated so loudly. I decided to awake my helper so that he could check the content of the message that I had just received. He realized it was an Mpesa message from GiveDirectly. They had debited my first transfers as they had promised during enrollment. I was very happy since it was my first time receiving such a huge amount of money.

I spent part of the transfer on buying two oxen. They were purposely for my farming activities since I am a farmer. I then bought a bed and mattress. Previously I used to sleep on a mat which often left me complaining of back pains. I then cleared some fees arrears for my grandchildren. Initially, they used to be sent home for school fees and this affected their learning process a lot. At one time, they were on the verge of dropping out of school to collect school fees and some had dropped out of school. I also bought some maize seeds and cowpeas and fertilizers since we are in the planting season.The remaining amount of money I bought some enough foodstuffs for my family.