"I was in my home relaxing after coming home from the water pan where I had gone to fetch water for my family consumption. After news spreads in the village that the transfer had been sent, My helper checked my phone since I am illiterate. I felt very happy after he informed me that I had to receive my transfer. I was with my husband who was very excited after learning that I had received the transfer."

"I spent KES 34,000 to purchase 2 local dairy cows. This is a reliable source of income for the family from the sale of milk. Similarly, it will assist me whoever they reproduce, I will be able to sell them to cater for any emergency. I also bought proper beddings since I was using sacks as beddings that were not comfortable to sleep on. In addition, I bought 2 pairs of clothes for every member of my family we were repeating the same clothes every day was the order of the day which was an unbearable situation. Furthermore, I bought a small solar lighting system for my daughter for KES 2000 previously she was using a paraffin lamp which was costly and risky. The remaining amount I invested in a small business selling flour in my house. I currently earn a profit of 150 per day which helps me to cater for other needs like food and water."

"Being a housewife, I was on my way going home from fetching water at the only water point in the village. It is 3 hours journey to and from, I remember It was around 10 o'clock when I received the Mpesa message notification. Upon reaching home, I call my helper to confirm the Sms on my phone. He informed me that I had received my transfer from GiveDirectly. I felt very glad for receiving my transfer that will change my life for the better."

"I spent my transfer to purchase building materials including 18 iron sheets at KES 880 each, 60 building poles. The house that I had was very small to fully accommodate all of the family members and our household equipments. My 3 children were forced to seek shelter from our neighbors every night something that stressed me a lot. I also spent KES 11,500 to purchase 3 goats a future investment for my family. I will be able to sell them to cater for any financial emergency that might arise in the future. In addition, I used KES 5,000 to support my kid's education by clearing their fee arrears. The remaining amount assisted me in purchasing enough food and water for the family since we are experiencing drought and famine in our area."

"I spent KES 25000 of my second transfer on purchasing building materials. I bought 20 pieces of iron sheets, nails and timber for roofing. My house was not spacious enough and I built an extension of two additional rooms to make it big enough to accommodate all of us. I also paid for labor cost incurred in the process. I am happy that I will not be squeezing my items for space again. Apart from this, I also saved KES 10000 which I am planning to start a shop for selling food items in a few months to come. This will serve as a source of income for me even after completing both my first and second batch. I spent the remaining amount on buying foodstuffs like bales of flour to feed my family and a twenty five kilogram of rice which will sustain us for a while. I also to pay for some household expenses such as water and other expenses. Currently there is drought in our area and for some months to come we will have to to buy water for ourselves and for our animals. This money has enabled me to fulfill all the pressing issues I had, we have enough food despite the challenge of the poor harvest last season that resulted due to inadequate rains."

"The grass-thatched kitchen I had been using for the past five years had started letting water in from the old roof whenever it rains, the repair I had been trying had been so expensive since sourcing the appropriate grass to use had been so hard. I have hoped to construct a new one but the insufficient finances could not allow it since all the materials including iron sheets are so expensive to obtain at once. I was happy and thanked God when I received the first transfer as the construction became our priority to aid the complete demolition of the old kitchen and putting up a new one. I managed to purchase 18 iron sheets, timber, and building poles at KES26500 that are currently useful in the construction work. I also cleared school fees for my two daughters currently in secondary school who still needed KES10000 each to the end of the term. Out of the remaining amount, I spent KES 3500 on obtaining foodstuff since we exhausted the previous harvest in August and had been buying in bits since then. I spent the remaining KES 4000 on buying clothing for my three children, and also mine."

"This is a lifetime opportunity that has come for me.I am so happy since my ambition is coming to a reality.I have always wanted to own a better house but because of the inadequacy of finance it has remained a mere dream. The one I have at the moment is leaking. It is grass thatched, old and dilapidated and I cannot even harvest rainwater for domestic use. I want to build it an a sheet roofed house that will cost me approximately KES 40000. I will use the rest of the money to buy a cow."

"After dropping my two school-going children early in the morning, I go back home to herd my dairy cow until mid-morning. I spend part of my afternoon hours taking the cow to the stream for water and later in the evening pick my children from school. After accomplishing the day's activities, I feel happy and relaxed in the evening."

"My only challenge is getting money for food, school fees, and clothing. Ever since my husband passed on it has been hard making ends meet. I only get about Ksh 40 - 120 from fetching water which is not enough to cater to all this needs."

"My happiest part of the day is in the evening. I do wake up in the morning to fetch water in an one hour walk distance, then later go to the forest to cut down trees for charcoal burning. I get busy from morning until late in the afternoon.It is in the evening that I get time to rest."