"I've been having trouble sleeping because of my room's condition, especially the aging roof. The majority of its components are holed and leak whenever it rains. Given my current financial situation, I can only afford to replace a portion of the roof, which will require 10 pieces of iron sheets. I want to finish this before the year is over. Once I've done that, I intend to make an investment in the future by buying at least four goats to raise. I intend to sell some of them after they have given birth in the future in order to pay for my kids' education expenses. Although I rely on subsistence farming, I do not make much money from it, and my son typically provides for us. He has three children, his wife in addition to us, so we can't entirely rely on him. The goats will therefore be very useful in the future."

"My last born son broke his hand a day after receiving my December transfers. He was in excruciating pain, and I was compelled to use $19 of the $34 I had been given to hurriedly get him to the hospital for treatment. I'm glad he isn't in any pain anymore and that his recovery is going well. I formed a savings group with 10 other people and saved the last $15 in the group. Later this month, the savings group will give me $100. I am thrilled because I intend to use this money to buy at least five goats. It was a wise decision to invest in goats because they will multiply in number over the coming months, doubling my initial investment. I am completely dependent on my two older sons to help me financially and to take care of my other needs, like purchasing food. My dependence on my sons, who are also struggling to take care of me, will be lessened as a result of investing in goats, which will generate a new source of income."

"Two of our eight kids are in secondary school, four are in primary school, and the other two are still very small. We rely on my husband, who makes a meager living selling water in the town. Our children had left school at some time before we began getting the transfers because we could not afford to pay their tuition. They are now enrolled in school, which makes me happy because we were able to pay off the arrears thanks to the transfers. We used $20 from the transfers from the previous three months to pay the arrears they owed the school. Additionally, I spent $30 on a goat in the hopes of raising it and later selling some of its young to help pay for our kids' school expenses. I bought meals for my family out of the remaining $44. I appreciate the help, and I'm pleased of myself for helping my spouse with some of our domestic responsibilities."

"I have always desired to own and grow livestock that might help me generate cash quickly in case of an emergency. However, it has been challenging to achieve this dream in the past due to a lack of money to acquire the animals. Working as a school security guard, my husband is the only one who earns in the family, and his income cannot buy anything beyond food. So, I would not want to pressure him into buying a goat. However, with the monthly cash transfers, I plan on buying two goats, worth $40 each, in the next three months to start my rearing quest. I believe they will multiply into a larger herd in a few years and accumulate enough wealth."

"Using the transfers I have previously received from Givedirectly, I began a relatively small poultry project with 16 chickens. By the end of the year, I want to have at least 100 chickens, and I want to use the transfers to help me reach that goal. I am aware that this is no easy task because I have to balance using the transfer I received to pay for food and other household necessities for my family of ten while still setting aside money for this project. Having a good number of chickens will mean better returns from the sale of eggs and meat. If all goes well, I'll buy a couple goats to raise while I figure out how to take my eldest daughter, who recently completed her secondary school, to college."

"At the moment I am a single parent who looks after two of my children. Being a single parent can be quite exhausting and tedious especially considering that I cater for most of their basic needs without any help. Therefore, I plan to use the money that I receive to pay for their tuition fees and look into their nourishment as well. Apart from that, I also plan on saving a small amount of the transfer so that I can finally be able to buy a bed as well. Lastly I also hope that the funds will enable me to buy a couple of farm animals preferably a couple of goats and poultry as well."

"Due to my advanced age, I burn charcoal for sale, although I do not make much money from it. The process of removing wood logs for charcoal production takes a week. The most I can earn from it at the end of the month is $10, but that is insufficient to support us. God bless GiveDirectly for saving me. Since we began getting the transfers, life has been manageable, and at least we have been able to afford a full day's worth of food. I spent $30 of the last three months' transfers on a goat for breeding, and I used the remaining $64 to buy food for my family. Due to the ideal climatic conditions in our area, goats make wonderful investments and thrive there. If all goes according to plan, I should be able to sell some of them in the future to help pay for our upkeep."

"I would love to expand my herd of goats to four by year's end. However, looking at the financial obligations on my shoulders, am uncertain about accomplishing my goal by then. Having no one to rely on for provision, I sometimes take on charcoal burning tasks to raise money. However, I cannot make much because the physical demands overwhelm me. This is why, I want to rear livestock as I could easily sell them to get money for food."

"With the cash aid that I receive from GiveDirectly, I am proud to have started goat farming. As of now, I own 3 goats. This is a reliable source of income that will assist me in supporting my grandchildren’s education, as well as sell them when they multiply to cater to any financial emergencies. The goal that I hope to accomplish in the coming year is to boost my livestock farming by saving some money to buy more goats."

"The first thing that comes to mind when I close my eyes is building a spacious house for my wife and two children. Our current two-room structure, built in 2002, is becoming small for the my growing family, and am afraid there will eventually be limited privacy in the house. My wife and I have had conversations around constructing a three-room house made of brick walls and a tin roof. To accomplish this, I require at least $1000, which is hard to accumulate given the other financial burdens, like school fees, that I bear. However, my plan is to use every cash transfer from now on to boost my business of buying and selling goats. Increasing my capital, will enhance my profits and eventually grow savings that will fund the project. I would be happy if my goal would be successful by end of 2024."