"On that day, everyone in the village was happy, letting us know that there was some good news, even though I had not received it. I kept checking my phone, hoping to receive the same message, and it did not take long for me to get it. I was in the field with my spouse, tending to our cows, and when I told her the good news, she was just as excited. We did not waste any time and went to a nearby shopping center around 4:00 pm to collect the entire amount. We had all of our plans in place, and by the second day, we had already made our first payments and purchases."

"My biggest accomplishment by the end of this year and beyond is to increase the herd of livestock that I have currently. I am optimistic that by the end of the year the goats that I would have bought would multiply, thereby increasing my initial investment. The ultimate goal is to sell some of the goats and use the money to buy a dairy cow. Thereafter, I'll be able to sell milk after purchasing the dairy cows, which will be one way of generating income that will help me take care of my needs."

"For the longest, I rely on livestock to earn a living because it is the only farming that does well here. The prolonged drought has unfortunately reduced my income as goats fetch very low prices at the market. In extreme cases, I have lost countable heads of cows. As a result, my children have to support me financially because my husband and I cannot do any hard jobs to earn money. I am thankful because the transfer has come at a time we needed it most. It will enable us to add more goals to the five that I have and also buy food for a few months. I am happy that it will ease the burden on those I relied on and they can do other things with the money they used to give me."

"Since I lost my cows due to drought, I plan to use the transfers to manage future unexpected droughts. I will use about $750 of the transfers to erect a fence across my farm. This will ensure that my livestock has enough controlled grazing. In addition, I plan to grow grass which will be used in extreme drought conditions to feed the livestock. For the amount that will remain, I plan to purchase food and other household products. These transfers will change our lives for sure."

"Sometimes in January my husband, Wesley, bought 2 cows for keeping. I was so excited about it since I am certain that in the next few months once they calve I will be relieved from the burden of buying milk for household consumption. It has always been the dream of our lives to be able to be self-sufficient in milk production but the dream had been elusive because of inadequate finances and several competing needs. So it is an achievement of a lifetime, I foresee an easy and improved standard of living for us in the future."

"Cow kuko nari nkeneye ibishyingwe n'amata"

"My main goal is to have a livestock-rearing project. I would want to start with the rearing of goats owing to the fact that they are quite cheaper as compared to cows. Later, I would sell part of them and buy cows to have the different types of livestock in the farm. So to achieve this, I would ensure that after every two months, I buy a goat worth $34 or $35 to start off the project."

"Depending on unpredictable salary is somewhat stressful and mind boggling as well. My PTA teaching job, for example, is unpredictable as I can stay for up to 3 months without pay because the school solely depends on parents who in turn live from hand to mouth, to pay school fees for their children. Therefore, as a family, we hope to venture extensively into cowpeas, maize and green gram farming on the onset of rains to supplement food and earn income for the family of 3. I will be excited that my family will be food secure as well as financially stable."

"The biggest difference in my daily life is the addition of a cow, which we never had before. I am looking forward to a future where I have enough milk and don't have to spend money on it. I hope to start saving from the proceeds of the motorcycle taxi, which will be useful in starting other new projects in the future."

"I used a sizable portion of my transfer to pay $28 for a goat. As a casual worker, I make a living by doing sporadic odd jobs. I don't make much money from the jobs I do, so occasionally I can't take care of my basic needs, like buying food. I decided to invest my monthly stipend wisely by purchasing a goat. I spent $4 on two hens in addition to the goat. I'll sell some of these animals once they multiply and become more numerous, and I'll use the proceeds to take care of myself or even to purchase dairy cows. I'll sell the milk I get from the cows and supplement my income."