"We are a family of 7, 3 girls and 2 boys. We depend mostly on casual jobs like weeding other people's farms for wages. We are people living from hand to mouth, we must set out each morning to look for these jobs just to be able to buy the much-needed 2 kg of maize. We do not own a dairy cow, so we borrow milk from our mother, just 2 cups to prepare tea in the morning. It is a sad state of affairs and it worries us a lot. Our small children require milk for their proper growth and development. We have always desired to buy a dairy cow but due to a lack of finances, it has not been possible. We are happy that this help has come to our village. We intend to use KES 35000 to buy a dairy cow for milk productivity for consumption and the surplus for sale, we will use the rest of the money to buy sheep, we live next to a forest and there is plenty of pasture. We want to take advantage of the resource to benefit us."

"My only cow calved down four months ago. Before this time, we used to purchase milk from the market, costing us KES 3,000 a month. This was costly for us considering we do not have any salaried or permanent jobs. For these four months, I no longer buy milk which is such a relief for us. I am happy that I can have my own milk just like my neighbors. I can now concentrate on buying other foodstuff that I can not produce from the farm."

"When I receive this money I will plan KES 50,000 to buy a spacious house for my family. My monthly earning of KES 6,000 is not enough for me to build a better house for my family as well as buy them food. I am currently buying milk for consumption which is expensive for me. This leaves me with the alternative of buying a dairy cow with KES 35,000. We will be able to produce milk for domestic use and thus cut family costs. This will be a sign of relief for me and will bring happiness to my family. I will also consider buying a plastic water tank to enable us to harvest rainwater."

"One of my cows gave birth to a healthy calf on Christmas day. This was one of my happiest moments, in that, the number of my livestock is slowly increasing."

"We are farmers depending heavily on farm produce for income. At the moment, we do not own a cow of our own, we are forced to purchase milk from the market which costs us up to KES 3,000 a month. It has been in our plan to purchase a cow but due to insufficient funds, we have not been able to. We, plan to use KES 40,000 to buy a cow mainly for milk production for domestic use. This will go long way towards reducing our daily expenditure which will be a relief for us financially. For the rest of the amount, we plan to purchase a water tank. It will help us collect clean rainwater for drinking."

"I am a mother of two primarily depending on casual jobs to make ends meet. It is through this that I have been able to feed my family and meet other needs. I used to love maize farming until it was adversely affected by a micro-organic disease. I reduced it and diverted it to livestock keeping. I currently own two dairy cows producing more than ten liters a day. I earn approximately KES 400 a day from milk sales in addition to having some liters of milk for household consumption. It has always been my aim that I expand it to assure me milk production throughout the year. This cash transfer means answered prayers. I am planning to use KES 40000 to buy a dairy cow. This is an added asset to my family and with time I will have more milk for sale. This will bring us higher income and prolong our milk production across the year making it more reliable for us."

"Receiving this transfer will enable me accomplish my wishes. I have been living in an old leaking kitchen for the last two years. The kitchen is in a very poor condition and I could wish to build a new one. I also own one dairy cow in which the returns do not satisfy my needs. Adding another dairy cow will enable me have enough milk for domestic use and sell of surplus milk will cater for my family daily expenses. I am happy for Give Directly's decision to come and eradicate poverty in my locality."

"The heifer that I bought will still take at least three years before it calves and due to this, we still buy milk daily. It is my wish to buy a dairy cow that has already calved so that I will be able to save the money that I would otherwise spend on milk. In addition, I am planning to cement the floors of my house since it is always so dusty and this can easily affect our health. Apart from this, I am getting old as days pass by and I currently depend on my grandchildren to help me in dusting it using clay. This usually takes a lot of time before it is done."

"When I received my second transfer, I spent KES 9000 to buy a dairy goat. I will be using the milk that I will be getting from it for our consumption while I sell the milk from my dairy cow to earn an income. In addition, I spent KES 3200 on clothes and a pair of shoes, KES 2200 on four chickens, and KES 11500 on two goats as an investment that I can rely on in case of a financial crisis. Apart from this, I used KES 2100 to purchase three pieces of iron sheets that I will use in building a sheep pen and I still have KES 23000. I depend on casual work mainly breaking large stones into gravel that can be used during the construction of houses. This work is tiresome and needs a lot of energy and I am happy that with the investments that I have made using the transfer, I am guaranteed of a meal even without working since I can easily sell eggs and use the money in buying them."

"My sons used to sleep in their friend's houses before receiving the transfer since I had not been able to build a house for them. In addition, I had not been able to demolish our kitchen and build another one after the death of my spouse despite our culture dictating that the kitchen should be demolished before five years ends after the death of a husband. I depend on buying milk and selling them at a higher price in our nearest town and I usually earn around KES 170 after deducting my transport. I usually end up using this money on food and in paying school fees for my three children hence I had not been able to achieve my goal of building a house for us. With my second transfer, I spent KES 40000 to build a kitchen for my family and a house for my children and used the remaining amount to purchase a heifer after topping up some amount. The dairy cow is an investment to me that will lead to an increase in milk production hence an increase in income from dairy farming that I can use in paying school fees for my children."