"Financial struggles have really weighed me down. This has been made worse by the current drought that has made food and water scarce and costly. The little I get from my charcoal business is not enough to cater for all the needs. I have six children to feed, clothe and educate."

"Scarity of food and water is the biggest challenge that I am currently facing. This is due to ravaging of the drought that we are experiencing in our area, all the water pans that we have been relying on have dried up. This has forced me to buy water for household use every day. I, therefore, buy 4 jerricans of water daily that costs me KES 200. This is very costly to me since I have to buy food every day for my family of 5. With most of money spent on food and water, paying school fees is now a problem."

"In the month of September, my daughter got a job as a house help in Mariakani. This makes me happy because end month she gave me KES 2000 which I spend it on food and I was able to spend the little money I earn from my charcoal work on other household expenses like buying water."

"The biggest difference in my daily life is the relief I now have ever since I started receiving payments from GiveDirectly. I got a motorcycle which is both a helper in fetching water as well as an investment because it operates as a motorcycle taxi. I am happier and settled now unlike before, all thanks to GiveDirctly."

"Persistent drought in our village is the main challenge that we are facing. Over the years, I have been depending on subsistence farming to put food on the table. This saved my family a lot since the little money I got from my charcoal burning was used for investment in my children education. However, this is not the case at the moment. All the money I get is solely used for food and water. This has made life to be more difficult for me and my family. Upon receiving the cash transfer, I will buy twenty goats that I will keep and sell when they multiply to educate my children. Goats do very well during dry condition so this is the next investment I intend to make with the cash transfers."

"At around 10am when I was fetching some water, I received a message in my phone. I took my phone to check what the message was all about and to my surprise it was the 1st transfer from GiveDirectly. The surprise was as a result of having forgotten the date I was promised to receive the transfer. I felt happy knowing that the financial challenges I was passing through have got a solution."

"It was on 14th of October 2021 at around 9am when I was resting from a tedious work of fetching some water when I received a message in my phone. Since I was very tired, I reluctantly checked the message. My eyes stuck on the phone screen after realizing that it was a transfer message from GiveDirectly. I was filled with joy and jumped up and down. People who were around were surprised and asked me what the matter was but in vain, I uttered no word."

"I spent part of my first transfer on buying building materials such as building poles KES 7600, pieces of iron sheets, threads and nails. This was for the construction of a brand new house because the initial one is in a bad state and anytime it would collapse. Also, I bought a bicycle at KES 11000 which has been of great help to me in carrying water because the water point is quite far 10KM from the village. Also, I cleared a school of KES 5000 for my three children who are still in primary schools and this has motivated them in such a way that their faces can tell every morning. With the remaining amount of money, I bought foodstuffs, school uniforms and other household items that I was lacking."

"When i received the money i will firstly renovate my house because during rainy season it leaks alot and i don't sleep because the house is always full of water and also i will buy food because i did not harvest enough since my farm was affected by the earthworms i managed to harvest only two bags of 50 kgs while when everything is okay i usually harvest 70 bags. Currently i am buying food after i have sold out some firewood then i am able to buy food."

"The biggest difference in my life is the fact that I no longer do charcoal-burning instead I tend to my goats take them to where there is grass and give them water. I am no longer worried about food now because I kept some cash to cater for that. I am so happy and grateful."