"Climate change is the real issue that has affected us. It is so sunny and dry nowadays.We no longer receive adequate rainfall. I am passionate about dairy farming, because of changes in weather patterns pasture and water have become so scarce. The vagaries of weather has cause us alot of suffering. I am left with no option but to purchase ,which is costly and I cannot sufficiently provide for my cows for maximum production of milk."

"The major problem is this house, it is made of grass and it gets soaked during the rainy season. Some nights we can not sleep properly because running water passes through my house. At times we also sleep on an empty stomach because finding money and work is a challenge."

"To be fair, GiveDirectly have done nothing wrong. Since they came God have protected them from accident. They have given me a huge amount of money that I didn't work to get to improve my living standards. They don't accept even water or food from us."

"We have passed through a tough period of drought and as a polygamous family with total of 4 children, our husband cannot provide basic needs for everyone in the family and sometimes we have to sleep hungry for 2 days and if I do odd jobs like casual labour in the farms I get a little to support kids though not sufficient enough to push us for longer days. It has been tough getting clean water around and sometimes we have to travel longer periods to get pond water which is no fit for human consumption so our kids get sick time to time, and taking care of them is very expensive."

"Receiving this money makes me feel special that amongst all other people in Ganze that am amongst those who will benefit from the project, among all organisations that visit Give directly is one of the most respected organisations as it gives people unconditional cash transfer that comes twice, they also prepare us on how to use the money effectively and from this education many have been benefiaricies and the community visited have been transformed and I believe I will live to tell my story to my other community members. I plan to buy domestic animals inclusive of a donkey who will help ferry out water for my household and even for my neighbors at a small fee, I have a plan to rear few cows and goats so that can be back up plan where I can resell them during hard economic times."

"For me, Give Directly does everything good, but they don't accept the least thing (water) from us. That attitude from them can really make me feel bad, even if they won't take anything but at least water is enough. Sometimes their staff run out of water and you can see the thirst in them, but when you offer them water, they refuse it and say thanks, that's really not fair."

"My long-term desire has been to have a reliable source of income for my family. After receiving my transfer, I spent KES 35,000 to purchase a second-hand motorbike. This was to help me in fetching water since we are experiencing drought in our area. Similarly, I am engaging in taxi driving where I earn an income of KES 500 per day. This income I use mostly to feed the family as well as save some for paying school fees for my children. Furthermore, I spend KES 2,000 to clear the school fees arrears for my kids. They were always sent how for fees something affected their performance. In addition, I invested KES 8000 in goats rearing an alternative source of income for myself."

"It was around 10 a.m when I received a message bearing great news from GiveDirectly. I was excited to confirm that the promise that I had been given some months ago was finally in. I was fencing around my piece of land around my home. At that moment, my spouse was out to fetch water and on arrival, I welcomed her with the news that excites her a lot. Even though we were so certain that the money will come in, the excitement was overwhelming."

"The better part of last year was very tough for me and my family. The drought did hit us very hard in terms of our source of income. We depend heavily on our farms and without rain, it proved to be a challenge for us to earn a living and get food to it. To add salt to the injury I had an issue with my leg. It was swelling and this meant that it was not able to engage in very strenuous activities. When I received the transfer I spent KSH 1000 on buying food. I decided to do so since that was the major challenge I was facing at the moment. With no rain, it became very dry, and was very hard to find water. This prompted me to buy water from the vendors at very high prices. I spent the remaining KSH 200 buying water for my use at home. With my second transfer, I spent KSH 500 on my Chama. I decided to invest that amount of money so that I can be able to acquire a loan that I will use to build my house which is already falling due to weak surrounding poles. I also spent another KSH 500 in repaying a debt. During the tough times, I went ahead and bought some food on credit so that my children would not starve and also have the energy to go to school and write their exam papers. I also spent KSH 1000 to buy food for my family that we celebrated together with my family members over the festive season. At the end of last year, we started experiencing some light rains. This prompted me to use the remaining KSH 1000 to prepare the land and get it all ready for the planting season."

"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."