"I am currently alone with my children who look after me. My husband died and left me all alone. I depend mostly on my children who are currently in different towns trying to do some casual jobs to survive. When I received the first transfer from giving directly it was of great help to me. I spent KSH 1000 on buying food. I had already spent two days having one meal per day before receiving the transfer and when I received it, I quickly decided to stock food for myself. Due to my hip condition, I am not in a position where I can be able to carry water over long distances. The option I only hard is to buy water and also pay for its transportation from the water to source my home. I spent the KSH 200 buying the water for my use. When I received the second transfer, I spent KSH 1000 for my medical expenses. My hip problem had escalated and I was in very much pain and sought the services of a specialist to look into my problem. The expenses of the checkup plus the medicine all amounted to KSH 1000. I used KSH 1400 of the transfer amount to buy food. The health condition I was having did not allow me to work so when the transfer came in that was my priority so that I can be able to feed well and regain my normal condition. I have my two grandkids whom I gave out the remaining KSH 600 for them to be able to go back and continue with their education."

"Sickness is the biggest hardship I am currently facing. I have been suffering from persistent stomach pains for the past 3 months something that has deteriorated my health. I am not able to work and the medicines are also expensive. This has not only affected me but also my grandchildren psychology because they always cry seeing me in illness because they know I am their only hope remaining."

"It is still very early to notice any change since the KES 1200 that I received from GD helped me sort a few basic needs like food and medicine for one day only."

"I received the transfers at a time when we were still experiencing drought. It helped me in buying food, water, and medication whereby KES 600 was spent on food, KES 400 on water, and KES 200 on medicine."

"I am a wine Tapper and I barely make enough to cater for my family of three members. I had researched on starting a chicken rearing business .My first transfer was my capital and I started with 10 chicken which I bought for kshs 2000 and bought chicken feed for kshs 1000 but within afew days I lost 2 chicken.The second transfer came and I bought 6 more chicken for kshs 1500 and chicken medicine to prevent them from dying.The third transfer came and I bought chicken feed and more medicine and I was left with kshs 1500 which am saving to buy more chicken this month ."

"When I got involved in a motorcycle accident, I was badly injured and am still recovering two years down the line. My family of 9 has been through tough times as we are drained financially. All the money we collect from fundraising goes into paying for medication and transport to hospital which is about 150 kilometers away. I spend KES 5,000 per month in hospital bills and it is not easy. Sometimes, sleepless nights and severe pain is the routine when I fail to take medicine as prescribed because I may skip my clinic checkup other months due to lack of money."

"Last month, one of my sons in-law sent me KES 5000 as a new year gift. I spend half of the money to buy some medicine and the rest did shopping for the new year celebration. This brought a lot of joy in my heart because for once I celebrated new year differently compared to the previous years where I had nothing to eat on such a day. My grand children also came to visit me and having them around made me happy."

"My most recent transfer that I received from GiveDirectly programs. I just bought some medicine for my husband to start a small business in the community. I also paid my children schools feel and they are in school now . I'm even thinking about starting a new business to help me and my family. I bought two (2) bundles of zinc to improve my house I'm even going to paid people to cut my house sticks from the bush. I was only living on farming to survive but with the help of GiveDirectly I'm now able to doing something good for myself."

"The biggest difference in my daily life now is that I am now able to provide all the things I need for my daily life like food, medicine etc."

"I spent a total of KSH 20000 in the preparation of completing the construction of the house. I have already bought the raw materials required for the building. I have nails, wood, timber, and iron sheets ready. I am currently waiting for the carpenter who will build the house to finish up his other jobs so that we can start the process of completing the house. At the time I was receiving the transfer I was tending to my younger sister who had been admitted to hospital. Immediately I received the money I spent KSH 3000 in buying some medicine that was required for her to get better. I also paid KSH 3000 to the hospital to clear her bills for her to be cleared. I am happy that she is recovering well and soon she will be back on her feet. I also paid KSH 5000 to my cousin who was seating for KNEC final examinations in college. She did not have the money and neither did her parents and I decide to help her out. I am also happy that she was able to do her exams and she is currently awaiting her results. I used KSH 9000 to buy food and other household items for my family. I decide to buy some 2 bags of maize that will be consumed by the whole family. The maize I bought will feed us for the next two months which is something good as I can focus on other personal projects. I also saved the other amount totaling KSH 15000. I am still thinking of the best project to invest the money in. Once I have come to a conclusion I will use the saved money in the chosen project then."