"Food insecurity has been a trending matter that I have been trying to find a solution to. I cannot afford 3 meals a day and the trick is to skip lunch so that we can have sufficient food for supper. My husband is 89years of age and his cognitive abilities have been declining leaving me as a sole bread winner. I am casual laborer doing menial jobs like smearing people's houses to make ends meet. I get paid KES 200 to smear one house and I feel like the work is not commensurate to the amount. I am being exploited because I have no otherwise. Doing food budget with KES 200 defeats me because prices of food have gone up"

"I'm struggling with lack of income owing to the fact that I'm currently economically involved. As a family we depend on my husband's income from his business selling livestock to be able to get our needs. This line of business is normally affected by climatic conditions such during droughts prices are low. Sadly it's like always draught over here and that has been reducing family income a lot."

"It's been raining since the year begun and so we have planted most of our fields. I feel happy because the season seems promising which gives me hope that we will get good yield this time round. This will also lower prices of essential commodities and generally food prices which will favor us still."

"It's been a rainy season for about two months now and I'm so happy about that. It all means that we're able to get water nearby from a water pan and also continue farm work as we've been planting a lot. Food prices have also been low due to the fact that vegetables have been flooding the markets. Generally when the rainy season is on life is a little easier."

"With my recent transfer, I was able to purchase maize flour for my family. Even though I do motorcycle taxis, there has a low income generated from this business owing to the high cost of living. For the two consecutive seasons, we never had any good harvest hence we have been forced to keep on buying food. The increase in food prices has of late made it even more difficult for us to obtain food thus we occasionally miss meals. Fortunately, when I received my transfer, I felt relief because I knew that I could acquire food that could take my family for about a week."

"I sat for my O level two years ago and because I could not join college, I opted to ride a motorcycle to earn a living. I am living with my mother who is a widow following the demise of my dad. Life has not been very easy for us although I have been able to struggle to offer as much support as I can to my mother. Immediately after I began building a house, the motorcycle taxi business went down as a result of the hike in fuel prices. Therefore I could not even fix the door for two months, however, when I received the transfer, I used KES 500 to fix the door. I am glad that currently, it is lockable. The rest of the transfer helped us to obtain food. I am glad that as a family, we were able to buy additional food."

"I am happy that the unconditional transfers from giving Directly are helping me take care of my family’s needs, which I cannot do due to my low income. I would like to encourage the organization to increase the monthly stipend. Food prices have risen, and it is hard to plan because the amount is very little."

"I am a widow and the sole breadwinner of the family (1 child). 5 years since losing my husband, life has not been smooth sailing for the two of us. I currently work as a housemaid, earning KES 3500 monthly. The roof of my house is seriously leaking when it rains and as a result, my valuable property was destroyed. I have to stay awake all night when it rains to cover my clothes and other household items with polythene paper and watch over to avoid them being rained on. Therefore, when I received my transfer, I spent KES 2000 to buy 2 pieces of iron sheets. It has been a challenge for me to buy the iron sheets because I save little because of my little income. In addition, I bought food (6 packets of 2kg maize flour, kales, 1kg of Omena, and tea leaves) worth KES 1000. Skipping meals during the day is the new norm I use in my family so that together with my child we can survive the effects of hunger and high prices of food items."

"I am the main breadwinner of my family (husband and 3 children). I run a small business selling vegetables in the market. The high cost of fuel and increase in prices of vegetable has contributed to the drop in profit margins I am currently earning. My husband earns a living selling pal wine in the village. His business became unprofitable because of the drop in the quantity of palm wine from the coconut affected by the prolonged drought. We both are struggling to feed our children because of our low income. This forces us to survive on one meal a day and also buy food on credit accumulating debts. They sent my 3 children to hope at the start of the month due to school fees balances. They have since spent over two weeks at home missing important classes. Therefore, when I received my transfer, I spent KES 1000 to clear the debt, and then went back to school to continue with my studies. In addition, I spent KES 2000 buying chickens. This will act as a proper investment for the future when they multiply and also as an alternative source of income when I sell some."

"I loved the service administered by the staff from Give Directly. The politeness, humbleness, and patience of the staff are something that I commend for them to continue doing. I urge the organization to increase the monthly stipend now that the prices of essential food items have shot up in recent months. This will help us cope and plan for the transfer in a better way."