"My pride is to see all my children educated and they are graduate from high school. I never had the privilege to go to school. My parents did not see the essence of taking me to school back then. Times have now changed and education is crucial for every despite their gender. I have two children who are still in school, one of them will be joining high school in a few months. She will be a resident in the school. Boarding schools and not free and she will need a lot of things as she steps into this new level. She needs a box, mattress, school uniforms, stationery, and other essentials. This will roughly cost me about 100000 KES. I will save up for the first six months and take the first installment of about 18000 KES to the school for her to be admitted."

"I have been a widow for the past 20 years. The small house my husband left me is falling apart. Termites have eaten up my roof making life impossible. My youngest daughter had to move in with her children since she had nowhere else to go. It has always been my desire to have a bigger house, preferably a two-roomed house. One room would house my daughter and her kids the other would be mine. We have reasoned together with my daughter and thought it wise to save up together and build this house. Once I receive this money I will save about 2000 KES monthly and give it to my daughter. 10000 KES will be enough to commence this project."

"My dream has always been to have a house to my name. Since I was born I have been living with my mother. I have four children and one grandson all of them have been born and raised in my mother's house. I have never been married. Selling beer has been my main source of income all these years. The only challenge is that the money has never been enough for me to be able to build a house. The first time I heard about GiveDirectly was in Bamba, then last year I saw the field officers in Kinango village and Mnazimmwenga village, (both are in Kaloleni sublocation) you should have seen the excitement in my eyes. All those years of waiting and being hopeful finally paid off. I had confidence that our village would be next. I need about 50000 KES to build my house, this will cater to both materials required and labour. I will be saving 2000 KES monthly once I raise about 6000 - 10000 KES I will kick off this project."

"Receiving this money means I have to built my house because the one I'm living leaks when it's raining"

"I have been married for the past eighteen years now, but in those years I have not been able to pay my wifes' dowry. As a result, she had to go back to her place of birth. It has now been four years since and I have not made any progress. I am required to pay about 70000 KES, but once I pay half of it I will be allowed to take her back with me. We are blessed with one son and it hurts that I have only been able to see him once in four years. The second time I had to send my parents to at least go visit him because I could not bear the pain of having to go back to my house without him. My plan is to save this transfer every two months and pay the parents. 6000 thousand bimonthly is good for a start if I am focused and committed I know in less than five months I will have paid half the amount."

"As a new mother, lately, I have been thinking of the kind of life I want for our daughter. As early as now, I feel the need to start saving for her well-being. My husband and I have decided to it aside KES 1,500 per month. When she gets to the age she's required to join school, we shall use that money for fees at a good school, even if it means moving to a place where we'll get a decent one. The rest of the money we shall use for food and water on a daily basis."

"Two of our children are still in school. The fees that we are required to pay are well above KES 70,000 per term. This is besides other expenses like basic needs. My husband runs a retail shop and I do not work. Quick math, if we combine both transfers every month and make a deposit to both schools, we would be able to clear the fees. In two years, one will have finished college, and the other will be done with secondary school. We can use transfers of the remaining three years to grow the business and sustain ourselves better."

"Receiving this money means self-employment and self-reliance to me. I am a tailor by profession. With no funds, I have not been able to start a tailoring business that can generate an income to support the family. Together with my son, we have been depending on my husband all along. I also have a sister who stays with me because we lost our mother. I am planning to buy a sewing machine for 15,000 KES. I will rent premises at Ikanga center and start my business. Approximately, I will be making 5,000 KES. With the support from my husband who works as a petrol station attendant, this amount will be enough to sustain us."

"Late last year, a strange sickness engulfed and killed all my chickens. They were ready for sale. That was pretty unfortunate but I will not dwell on the past. Chicken gives good returns when I sell. I can make up to KES 300 per chicken as profit. With the first KES 3,000, I will buy six more, each at KES 500, and add to what I already have. Every other transfer I get thereafter, I will save KES 1,000 every month in a Sacco as I think of the business I can set up with the money I will accumulate at the end of three years. The rest we shall use for food and school fees."

"I share my house with two daughters-in-law and their children. The space is not enough to host 12 people. With every passing day, I wonder where I can get money to construct a small house and leave this bigger one for my grandchildren. The nights are uncomfortable, the children are restless and this breaks my heart. I will use my transfers as they come to complete the house I had started to build seven months ago. If I decide to save up, it would take too much time or I might be up using that money for other needs like food."