"For over the fast 6months, I have not seen really what to make me happy. But all that I can say is to give thanks to God that he has directed GiveDirectly to our town. But really, I have not been happy especially when my one of my sons left in the water after successfully passing to the 9th grade class."

"The amount received has well been put to good use as I have been able to rent a farm at KES 47000 to improve my farming skills for both commercial and personal use. The amount was also inclusive of drip pipe sprinklers and a generator to power the sprinklers ensuring the plants are well watered. An additional KES 2000 was used to pay for my child’s fare home as he was closing school at the end of the term. The balance of KES 6000 bought food supplements to sustain my wife and kids through the month."

"I spent part KES 30009 of my second transfer on paying school fees for my two children who are in secondary schools. This has been the main challenge because I did not have a stable job that could fund their education. I, therefore, had to seek help from the government and the well-wishers. I am now happy because they are now studying without any hiccups. In addition, I bought a water tank (120 liters) at KES 1500. I also bought new clothes for my spouse and kids to replace the old ones that had worn out. People have been calling us names as a result of the state of our clothing, this could lower our self-esteem. With the remaining amount of money, I bought foodstuffs for my family."

"For now I am a casual laborer involving myself in delivering water and washing dishes in hotels at Chebunyo town. Receiving this transfer will enable me start my own hotel and run a second hand clothes business as I have always been thinking of this idea. These businesses will generate more income to me and I will start saving towards my children education. I am happy to be part of Give Directly's program."

"I was drawing water from the creek when the message alert hit my phone. Upon checking out the message, I realised that my transfer has been sent. I was overjoyed and danced and blessed God and appreciate GiveDirectly (in absentia)."

"I used KES 20000 to buy a cow and used another KES 18000 to buy a water tank. The remaining amount of slightly over KES 10000 was used to clear some debts owed to us as a family. We had used a lot of money in hospital trying to save my husband's life only for him to succumb to illness and we had sold all the livestock including a piece of land that we owned. The water tank investment was informed by the fact that for a long time I had had to travel for far long distances in search of water and often ended up using water that was not safe for consumption. I am happy that I now have access to clean drinking water courtesy of GiveDirectly"

"Holling water"

"I am a mother of 6 and I have worked as a maize vendor for the past four years. In addition, I also do egg vending where I get up to KES 300 profits on the sale of three egg trays. From the proceeds, I would get money to pay school fees. But this was not enough because I have two kids in high school. I was even forced to shift my son from a boarding school to a day school. Therefore, when I received my transfers school fees were my priority. I, therefore, spent KES 17,000 on school fees payment for my son and daughter in high school. In addition, I spent KES 30,000 on the purchase of the eighth piece of land that we had previously sold out due to school fees. Lastly, I spent KES 2800 on 320 liters of a water storage drum. This will help in the storage of water for a longer period, especially during rainy seasons. I also spent KES 3200 on a bag of maize which will sustain my family before we receive the next transfers."

"I spent most of the transfer which was KES 10000 on repairing my house because it was in a very poor state and condition and it was almost collapsing. This was because its mud walls had grown so old, and that used to pose safety risks because in the event that they could collapse, then that could be so disastrous. We would spend the whole night awake when it rains, because it used to literally rain inside the house and at times rain water would find its way into the house through some holes in the walls. It was very difficult for me to address this issue because my occasional jobs as a housemaid hardly raised enough money and at times there could be conflicts that would consequently lead to a delay in getting my wages as well as the delay could go on for so long that I would just be forced to forget about it. That used to make me fee so sad and dejected. However, ever since I received the money from GiveDirectly, I am now so happy that I was able to repair my house and I am now having a better and comfortable place to sleep. We are no longer worried about where to sleep when it rains at night and rain water cannot find its way into the house anymore to make the logs rot and weaken the walls. I am so happy and grateful."

"Due to the persistent drought, I took the initiative to dig a well to provide irrigation water. So I spent my earlier transfer, KES 3000, to fund the exercise. Unfortunately, the laborers encountered a hard rock in the process and stopped working since I lacked the necessary resources to break it. This prompted me to look for an alternative source of income and decided to start a kiosk. So I pooled funds and ended up deducting KES 2400 from my recent transfer to acquire the initial stock. I used the rest of the money, KES 600, to enroll my son in kindergarten."