"Before the transfers, I never had cows before as I had no 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 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."

"The first thing we are planning is to renovate our house, we will cover it with sand and cement and it will cost $100. The renovation of the house is necessary as you have seen in our neighbours we are among the ones who live in muddy house and we are not proud of it. The other thing, we will buy a cow so that we will have manure to use in our agriculture activities for more production. The cow will cost $200. Moreover, we will have to buy land for agriculture as we have told you that we are in need of it and we think that it will cost $300. The rest of money will be spent on household items such as kitchen materials that will cost $30 and mattress that will cost $25 and buy some food stuffs at the market such as beans, Maize flour and cooking oil."

"My life has completely been transformed. I was able to buy cows when I had little else in terms of cattle. I was offered a chance to battle the drought with fertilizer to ensure that I could grow crops. GiveDirectly has given my life a complete shift in a positive direction."

"Before receiving the transfers from GiveDirectly, I was reliant on one lactating dairy cow. I needed an additional cow to increase production as a primary source of income to help pay for school fees and other household expenses. I could not afford a cow with the first transfer, but when I got the second, I spent $300 on a Friesian heifer. I expected it to grow and make a contribution to production, but it died after three months of conception due to an unknown illness. It was unfortunate that the expected goal was cut short, but I was grateful for the other great things I was able to accomplish with both transfers. I used the remaining $230 to pay school fees for my three children, one of whom is a university student and the other two in secondary school. I am pleased and grateful that my son, who was in college, finished and graduated, and that one of the two in secondary school completed his final exams. I am still excited to see them complete other higher levels of education that I believe will help them secure jobs."

"I recall the day I got my transfer. I was at home when I overheard my neighbours discussing the receipt of their initial transfer, so I returned home. I quickly grabbed my phone and checked my phone. On my screen, I saw a text message confirming that I had also received my share. I couldn't keep the good news from my wife, so I called her and told her, and she was overjoyed. She knew she'd be able to fulfil her dream of owning a dairy cow. I am overwhelmed by your generosity."

"The biggest difference in my life is that I am glad to have accomplished the dream of boosting livestock rearing as a reliable source of income for the family. Currently, I am happy to own six cows and 10 goats in total, and the long-term goal I would sell the goats when they multiply to construct and start a small hotel business at our nearby market."

"After accomplishing a lot with the second transfer, the only goal I have left is to boost my dairy farming. I intend to save enough money from the taxi business to purchase two more dairy cows. Achieving this desire will increase milk production, resulting in more income for the family. The money I will make from selling milk will reduce the burden of providing basic needs for the family, like food. I also intend to save some for my kids' education and invest in other development projects."

"Investing in livestock has been my desire for a while. Besides the goats which I already had, I used $118 from the second transfer to buy three additional goats. I opted to invest more in goats because they are cheaper compared to cows and they have ready markets. After that, I paid $50 school fees for my two primary school children so that they could be retained in school for better learning. I also decided to construct a house for my son. I bought him 14 pieces of iron sheets for $112, and some roofing timbers. For the building poles and rafters, he went by himself to the forest to cut to minimize the cost. Currently, the house is completed and he is happy in his house. I also bought some food since it was a tough time for us as a family and my vegetable vending business could not meet the family's needs."

"I currently want to establish a business raising livestock, mainly goats. I am aware that it will take some time because the money I make from my occasional work is not enough to accomplish anything right away, but I am confident that with hard effort and financial discipline, I can succeed. Even though I would love to start out with a cow, it won't be realistic because the revenue is unpredictable. As a result, investing in goats will be my initial investment, with the purchase of a cow coming later."

"Thanks to GiveDirectly, I can now hold my head high in my village. Just about all my neighbors in the vicinity have cows. I was the odd one out. GiveDirectly has allowed me, through their transfers, to ensure that I could also get one, allowing me to gain income from its milk as well as have some left over for domestic use. They also allowed me to solve a problem I had been having sleepless nights over. Without your certificates, you cannot pursue gainful employment since you have no proof of your education. GiveDirectly allowed me to be able to claim back my KCSE certificate and possibly have better opportunities open up for me, as opposed to those I missed out on prior due to a lack of proper papers."