"Living in poverty stricken area where prolonged droughts are normal has not been easy. Since farming is not an option for us and I don't have any livelihood skills, I am a housewife and my husband is the sole bread winner. I have always desired to bring something to the table and help my husband who is a charcoal burner with the family responsibilities but I have never had financial capability to raise enough capital to start a business. Our family desire to own domestic animals also seemed like a nightmare because we have never owned any domestic animal. When I received my second transfer, I spend $175 to buy five mature goats and $250 to buy a cow. I can not express the joy felt by my family especially my children seeing domestic animals around the compound for the first time! I spend the balance to buy food that lasted us for a while. I am so thankful to GiveDirectly for the financial support and making our long life dream come true."

"My friend gave me a cow to milk and feed my children to avoid the high cost of milk. I was feeling bad that I am rearing cattle that I do not own. At times I could feel pressed with school fees and wished that this cattle could have been mine. It would have made my life easier, I will have sold one of them and clear school fees arrears for my daughter Diana. When I received my second transfers from GiveDirectly, my first agenda item was to buy a dairy cow with KES 35000. This brought joy to me and my family. My daughter Diana who was on her secondary school education was being sent home day in day out to fetch school fees arrears of KES 19000. With this money I managed to clear all her school fee balance and she was able to continue with her studies without any disturbance."

"Purchasing milk daily is so costly , I wish to save some amount from the sales of my farm produce to purchase a dairy cow. This will enable me to cut the daily cost of buying milk which is so costly for me."

"I am so elated that the transfers assisted me a great deal to improve on my housing condition. I was able to change the condition of my house, I replaced the mud wall with sand and also cemented the floor. I used KES 50000 and it has given my house a facelift. I no longer have to worry about the difficult job of smearing with cow dung which is a lot of work that I am no longer able to do it well because of my old age. Iused the rest to buy food for household consumption."

"Life had taken a toll on us especially when the cost of living rose. We were struggling to make ends meet. When we received the transfers it came as a great boost for us. We had always wanted to own a dairy cow since the one we have belongs to a relative. When the transfers came we used it to purchase a dairy cow that we hope to increase our milk production. It is about to calve. It was worth KES 30000 at Chebunyo market. We also bought furniture. Our lives have significantly improved since we received the transfers and we are eternally grateful to GiveDirectly for their support."

"I never had a dairy cow and used to purchase a liter from the neighbor at KES 60 which was high and some days I could not afford it. I sold the only cow I had to sort out the school fees for my child who was in college. When I got the transfer I decided to purchase one at KES 40000. Life has changed from worse to better since I can now milk my cow and have enough for household consumption and sell the extra to get disposable income."

"The scarcity of drinking water had been a problem to me and even water for household use was da and could not easily be accessed. The situation was further worsened by my condition, I am aging and as a result, I am not able to carry water on my back for long distances. The transfers could not have come at a better time. When I received the money I never hesitated I went straight to purchase a water tank that cost KES 36000. I also used KES 20000 to dig a water dam that my cows are using. I am so elated since I longer have to travel long distances to look for water, it has saved me all the agony."

"My intentions when I received the transfers were mostly based on investing on my farm. Therefore I was elated when I went ahead to use the transfers in buying a cow which cost me KES 16,000 and then proceeded to buy three goats which cost me KES 11,500 collectively. I am hoping that in case I run into any financial difficulty down the line the animals will come in handy. Afterwards I gradually spent the balance left on nourishment since that it is a recurring challenge in my home as a consequence of drought."

"I'm planning to spend some money this year on acquiring a few farm animals, ideally goats as they are less expensive than cows. This is so that I'll have a backup plan in case I encounter financial difficulties. Considering how difficult it is, I also want to concentrate on nutrition."

"Before the transfers, I never had cows before as I had no stable source of income. I used the transfers to buy female cows for kshs 35,000. This is for milk production for my family's consumption and sale. I do casual work to earn a living and most of the time the pay is too little to cater for my basic needs, I do top it up with the money from selling milk and this has enabled me to take care of other basic needs like food, clothing and kids school fees. I used the remaining part of the transfers of kshs 20,000 to buy a piece of three-seater furniture. I used to fear hosting friends and relatives as I never had enough seats for them, but my self-esteem has improved since I started receiving transfers from GiveDirectly."