My main goal in the next one year and beyond is to see my children go to school without being sent home for school fees. Getting money to settle their school fees had been one great challenge owing to the fact that my husband and I no longer have any reliable income. I would ensure that I achieve this by majorly spending the transfers that I would be getting on paying their school fees believing that one day they would land better jobs in the future and support me as well.

It has always been my happiness and my dream to see my children continue and prosper in their education, and in the current state that we are in as a family, it had always been difficult for my husband and I to easily manage to reduce the school fees burden. So upon receiving the transfers, I decided to clear part of my children’s school fees for two who are in secondary and one in primary levels of education with the whole amount of KES. 3470 I received from GiveDirectly and I was so grateful.

I spent all the transfer on paying school fees for my children. I have three children in primary school and one in secondary school. They would be sent home to collect the school fees and this was affecting their performance in school. Currently, they are studying well without being disturbed. I rely on small-scale farming and selling of charcoals. This is my source of income to meet the basic needs of the family. I am so happy because my children are no studying well.

My daughter, who is in form two, had pending school fee arrears when I received my transfer. Her school administration would constantly remind me to clear the balance so that her studies would not be disrupted. Most of the time, I was able to persuade them to keep her in class while I toiled to raise money by selling charcoal. I had not made any sales by the transfer day, so I opted to use the majority of the transfer, KES 2,000, to pay the fee. During this time, my household had run out of food from the previous two days, leaving us mostly starving. As a result, I purchased food with the remaining cash, enough to last the rest of the week.

In my opinion, give directly has done extremely well. This is because using the financial support that they give us; I have been able to pay my children's school fees. Now they're not sent home due to fee arrears. I am yet to note any area where give directly has not done well.

I am a charcoal manufacturer. In a week I make around KES800. This helps me to fend for my seven children, especially when it comes to paying school fees which are now in arrears. In my first transfer of KES3000, I used to buy a goat at KES2000, the remaining amount I used towards the payment of my children's school fees. When I got my second transfer of KES3000, my children had school fee arrears of KES6,000, So I used it all to reduce the debt.

I was in the farm looking for vegetable when I heard a message ring, upon checking it, I found out that I had received the transfer. I couldn't wait anymore as I had to rush to the nearby market where I withdrew the whole amount. I was so relieved that my children will go back to school finally after staying at home for a couple of days without hope of going back.

The biggest difference in my daily life is that my children are now in school and the fact that I am guaranteed that I will be receiving the monthly transfers, I can talk to their headteacher to allow them stay in school and concentrate on their studies.

I am a mother of seven children and I have been burning and selling charcoal to provide for my family. Although it has not been easy paying school fees for the five school going children and providing other basic needs, I have been trying my best to give them the best that I can. When my mother passed on two month ago, I had to chip in with all the money that I had to cater for the burial expenses. I couldn't afford to pay school fees and the fees arrears added up to KES 3550. When my children were send home for fees, I couldn't afford to take them back to school and they had to stay at home. My goal was to buy more livestock but since the kids were at home, I had to pay something for them to be allowed back to school. I spent KES 1000 to pay school fees and KES 2000 to buy a goat. I'm hopeful that it will give birth to some other goats and one day I'll be able to sell it and provide pay some bills.