I work hard selling vegetables all day, but it's tough, especially at night, I am too tired to help my children. My dream is to open a shop where I can sell basics like flour, sugar, cooking oil, soap, and everything else people need. With $250, I believe I can start this shop successfully using the space I already have. Earlier, I bought a place, and with the money from my sales, transfers, and I plan to sell these goats, together I will be able to fund my new shop. The profits from my shop will help me easily pay for my children's school fees and improve my family's life. This opportunity is a big step toward a better future for all of us.

I am a mother of five children, and my greatest joy is seeing them prosper and achieve their goals in life. From the recent transfer, I allocated $20 to clear their tuition fees, ensuring their education continues uninterrupted. I made strategic investments in purchasing a goat for $50, believing in their ability to multiply and provide a stable income during challenges. Additionally, I invested $23 in four chickens, considering their potential to multiply and be exchanged for goats in the future. With the remaining amount, I allocated $9 to purchase food for my family, ensuring they do not go hungry. These investments and provisions are part of my efforts to secure a better future for my children and myself.

My objective is to purchase a cow, which I view as a valuable investment. I plan to accomplish this by utilizing the profits from my vegetable business. Owning a cow will not only allow me to cultivate my land but also provide additional income, especially if it reproduces and I sell the offspring. Moreover, the supplementary income will enable me to meet the educational expenses of my children. I am deeply grateful to this organization for enhancing my living standards through their financial support.

I sell vegetables at our village market, while my husband sells charcoal, supporting our family of eight. Previously, we all lived together in a small house, but I'm grateful that with the help of these transfers, I have been able to build a separate, comfortable house for our children. Additionally, I have invested in goats and I am happy to say that I now own two. From the transfers, I allocated $15 to settle a school debt for my children. I then used $19 to purchase new uniforms for them, as their old ones were worn out. Furthermore, I spent $34 to acquire another goat, expanding my herd. The remaining $34 was utilized to purchase more vegetables, thus enhancing my business. These changes have truly transformed my life for the better and I look forward to an amazing future.

Given the unpredictable nature of my earnings from selling vegetables from my home, I recognize the importance of diversifying income sources to support my five children and alleviate the financial burden on my husband. Consequently, I aim to invest more in livestock, particularly goats, as they offer a practical and versatile solution. As these animals reproduce, I plan to exchange them for cows in the future, facilitating plowing activities and providing a flexible asset that can be sold in times of financial need.

In the past three months, the majority of the cash transfers, amounting to $60, were allocated to acquiring two goats and $12 for purchasing three hens. Owning livestock stands as a reliable strategy to accumulate wealth, ensuring ongoing support for my family even after the cessation of cash transfers. I envision further expanding my livestock holdings, potentially exchanging some goats for a cow in the future. Such an acquisition would not only assist in plowing activities but also contribute to the growth of my overall livestock herd as they reproduce. Additionally, I dedicated $13 to buying clothes for myself and my five children, providing decent attire to replace worn-out garments. The remaining funds were directed towards acquiring food, addressing a critical need as my household had endured two days without provisions. During this period, my husband's income from charcoal-making was insufficient, prompting me to work on others' farms to secure at least one meal per day. The timely arrival of the cash transfer provided a welcome respite from this demanding activity.

My objective revolves around starting a vegetable-selling business. This aspiration has always burned within me, yet financial constraints have impeded its prior accomplishment. It is a longstanding goal of mine, and I am optimistic that the cash transfers will gradually help me gather the necessary funds to initiate this business. The profits generated from this venture will be critical in providing for my five children and supporting my husband, who currently sustains us through charcoal burning.

Using the recently received cash transfer, I acquired a goat valued at $30 to raise it. I had previously owned goats, but due to diseases, I lost them all, prompting me to restart the rearing process. The assistance from the cash transfers has enabled me to purchase three goats so far and I am excited to continue growing the herd. I aim to let them reproduce, expand the herd, and ultimately sell them to generate funds in the future that I can use to meet some of my children’s needs. Right now, my husband bears most of the family’s responsibilities. However, the scant earnings he makes from making charcoal can barely provide for our five children and myself; hence the need to build enough wealth to support him.  After buying the goat, I used the remaining $4 to purchase food as the household had just run out of maize flour. This ensured that my family had something to eat before my husband could raise money for more food, and I could never be happier.

My main goal is to start a livestock rearing project where I had already bought a few goats to start me off. I would want to be a farmer venturing in livestock and I plan to accomplish this by spending part of my monthly transfers in purchasing goats and later buy cows knowing that they would be of help in the future in case I would be faced with any financial difficulties.

I currently don't have a house of my own since the one I had collapsed and I have been staying with my children. Therefore the transfers that I received were of great help to me because I got an opportunity to buy roofing sheets in readiness to build the house. I bought the iron sheet worth KES.2000 and added to the ones that I already had and in the next few weeks, I shall have started the construction. I also managed to buy food with the remaining amount of KES. 1470 for my family since getting food was a also another challenge.

After I got enrolled into the program I decided that I would use this opportunity to grow my farm so that I could invest more in buying a couple of farm animals which I plan to eventually help me financially down the line. I ended up using KES 2,800 to buy a goat which has so far been my third goat to acquire with transfers. Lastly I ended up using the balance of KES 600 I had to purchase six packets of maize flour so that my children and I could have a meal.

My husband relies on charcoal production to meet the needs of the family, such as food and clothing. Because of the product's low demand, he hardly makes any sales, and if he does, his earnings are not more than KES 2,000 in a month.  It is difficult to provide food for our family of eight on a daily basis with this amount. In fact, the day before the transfer, the family had run out of food. That is why I prioritized obtaining KES 1,000 worth of maize flour. In addition, I spent KES 1,500 on new clothes for my six children and myself. Our old clothes were worn and torn from repeated use, and I was afraid we would get sick from the cold. I used the remaining funds to purchase a hen. My goal is to allow it to breed and grow the flock. In this manner, I will be able to raise funds in the future when I sell the chickens to meet the needs of my family.  

In my opinion, I feel like everything was done perfectly and I wish to thank GiveDirectly on behalf of my villagers for uplifting us. We are so grateful for the transfer as we are capable of providing basic needs for our families compared to previous days when we used to struggle to put at least a meal on the table.

I am a housewife and I have been depending on my husband who is a charcoal burner to provide for me and our six children. Recently, the business has not been an easy one as trees have been depleted due to drought and the fact that this is the major economic activity in the area. Most days, my husband cycles for kilometers in search of trees and it usually takes him around eight days for him to earn a profit of about KES 800. The low income has not allowed us to own livestock and we have been the laughing stock of the village as livestock is seen as a source of wealth and majority of people in my village own livestock. When I was enrolled into the program, my first goal was to focus on buying goats as they can thrive under tough climatic condition to save us from the shame. I spend KES 2000 to buy a goat and 1000 to buy second hand clothes for my children as their clothes were torn due to regular wash as each owned one pair besides the school uniform.

I was in the kitchen cooking when I got the message confirming that I had received some funds from give directly. This made me feel very happy because I had debts to pay. So, the following day, I went to withdraw the money and headed to school to reduce the children's fees areas.

I see nothing but good ever since I started receiving these funds. So far, I have managed to reduce my children's school fees arrears. currently, I only have a debt of KES600. I believe I will be able to settle it once I get to my second transfer. My children also have new school uniforms and they can now confidently go to school.

To raise our 4children, my husband and I have been collaboratively working as charcoal manufacturers. Our monthly earnings are around KES1500. This, however, was not enough when it came to the payment of the children's school fees. So, at the time we were receiving the first transfer, the children had a school fee arrears of KES1000. I, therefore, used KES200 to reduce the debt and the remaining KES1000, I bought some school uniforms for them