"The biggest difference in my daily life is that I have bought a dairy cow. I used to buy milk daily and this was so costly for me. I do depend on small scale farming and the harvest that we get annually is so small and only for consumption. I also do casual jobs in the village. My spouse is a security guard in one of the security company in Nairobi. The amount of money that he gets is so small and cannot meet all the basic needs of the family including paying school fees. We had no extra money to saved. We were not in a position to buy a dairy cow. We used to buy milk daily and this was so costly for us. When I received the transfer I found it wise to invest on dairy cow. Currently we no longer buy milk. We save the money that we could have used on buying milk to meet other basic household needs. I sell the surplus milk to earn an income to support my family. I am so happy because GiveDirectly has changed our living standard. I have devoted much of my time on this amazing dairy project. I wish to improve this to another level."

"My life is now very different than it was before since my children's education is secured .I was very worried because both of my children were in very strategic levels in school, whereby one is joining form 1 while the other one is suppose to finish form 4. This situation had turned our lives miserable since I had lost hope of my children continuing with their studies due to lack of school fees. Give directly transfers brought hope to my family more so my children's lives. I was able to pay fees for my children's school fees at ease that up to now its still like a dream to me. Nowadays I am very happy ,not resentful and always ready live my day very hopeful."

"I was so excited to receive the transfer from GiveDirectly. It was 9.00 a.m. when I received a message and on my first glance at that notification, I could not resist letting everyone in my household get the news. I was relieved as we already had a plan to offset part of the debt we had in my previous college. I was glad that at the receipt, my husband could not change the plans we already had, and all we did was consider what to put aside the agreed amount meant for the school fees and align on the priorities in the household goods we needed."

"After completing his secondary school studies, my son could not get immediate support from us that could have enabled him to pick his college studies. We kept promising him that things will soon get better, hoping to get some extra money that we were never sure of the source. We had been praying hard over it and we are finally glad to see our prayer answered by GiveDirectly. With the first transfer, I managed to obtain pieces of equipment necessary for his admission to the college worth KES6000, as he will be joining later this year. I decided to spend the other KES32000 on livestock after obtaining an in-calf heifer and a goat. We had also been buying milk whenever we don't get it from the immediate family members and I saw it good to invest in livestock with the hope that I will be selling the surplus in the future. With the remaining amount, I paid KES1000 on settling school fees for the younger kids currently in primary school and used the remaining KES7600 on foodstuff for the household."

"My most pressing challenge is a financial challenge. My husband is currently unemployed. He has to burn coal for neighbors before we can get food in the house. I can't even raise money for my kids school fees."

"Had it not been for the transfer from GD, I wouldn't have been able to provide the basic needs of food, shelter and education for my family like I am able to do now. As a single mother of four, I am the sole provider for my family. This has placed a huge financial burden on my shoulders, which is an extremely painful situation to be in. The money I earn from farming is not enough to cater for our living expenses. Oftentimes, I am left penniless, yet there are so many demands. Things changed however, when I received the transfer from GD. The dairy cow I acquired gives us a steady supply of milk for use in the household. We also sell the surplus and are able to earn money. Additionally, I have been able to build a good house for my children and I, which is more spacious and comfortable than before. I paid their school fees and do not have to worry about their learning being interrupted because of lack of school fees. Our lives have transformed for the better, and I'm grateful to GD for that."

"GiveDirectly has really impacted our lives by giving us these transfers. Some have been used to build houses, pay school fees, buy livestock and also open up new businesses."

"" We are going to use some of the money to pay our children school fees. There is something we have planned to do but we haven't gotten any capital to start; we will consider using portion of the money to start up a small business. Some of those items we intend to sell are rice, oil, fish, meat and others. These are goods that people buy on a fast pace. This will help us save extra money for our family upkeep"."

"Before receiving this transfer, my family lived in a small grass thatched house. It wasn't big enough to accommodate my husband, six children and myself. There was no sense of privacy and it was a sad situation. We, however, had no other choice because we did not have enough money to build a better house. My husband is a casual labourer and most of the money he makes goes towards buying food for the family. This, however, is no longer the situation. Our new house is spacious and accommodates all of us. I have also paid for my children's school fees, and no longer worry about whether they'll be sent home from school because of lack of fees. Our lives have drastically changed. Thanks GD!"

"Since receiving this transfer, I no longer have constant stress and worries about how I will be able to provide the basic needs for my child, especially food, shelter and education. I am a widow and single mother of one. I wasn't lucky enough to go get college and get a good job, so I have had to depend on casual jobs. These are rare to find, and they pay so little. My biggest fear has been that I do not have enough money to educate my child. With this transfer however, I plan on starting my business as an MPESA agent. I will save some of my earnings to ensure that I have enough money to pay for my child's school fees. I can now breathe easy."