"In the next six months I expect to have painted the whole of my house and staying in a nice good looking house"

"In the next six months l expect to have plastered my house and staying in it comfortably without worrying of any infection by dust."

"Since my childhood, the only source of livelihood I have known is livestock. It is our way of life and my passion from when I was a little boy. It is a skill I have mastered over the years and I actually feel like I interpret animal behavior better than human beings. Unfortunately I lost all my herd in the 2016/2017 severe drought. Thanks to GiveDirectly, I will now be able to restock my own herd of indigenous cows, goats and sheep. I also plan to venture into poultry farming and widen my income base. "

"Receiving this money means a new and much safer house for my family. Our current one is very old and one side has already collapsed leaving us very worried about our safety and health because of the July cold season characterized by strong winds. Secondly, we plan to purchase three indigenous dairy cows. With the constant milk supply, we will be able to earn some income from selling the milk. Lastly, we plan to buy a big water tank for water storage which comes in handy during water shortage periods such as now. "

"I used to work in a certain motorbike selling company in a nearby county but due to poor pay and sometimes no pay at all, i decided to come back home to practice subsistence farming. I was determined to earn a living out of farming but due to unpredictable and poor weather conditions, crop pests and diseases, my ambition to farming has ended up bearing no fruit due to poor harvests. The little i harvest is only left for family consumption. This is the biggest hardship i have faced"

"Six years ago my husband and I borrowed a loan from one of the SACCOS inorder to start a cereals business.The business collapsed and it was a struggle paying out the loan.We had a lot of debtors who bought the cereals on credit and did not repay.This is what led to the collapse of the business.We managed to offset the loan but we really struggled providing for the basic needs for three years.This was the biggest hardship in my life.We depended on casual labour to make ends meet which was not easy for us."

"I am a casual labourer.As such,my income is very small.When there is no work to do on other people's farms,my family will sleep hungry.I have also been struggling to pay school fees for my children as well as provide for all their daily needs.This is often very difficult given that on a particular day,am not guaranteed that I will get a job that will pay.Lack of money to cater for my family's needs is the biggest hardship I have faced"

"I expect to have bought the cow that I am planning to buy so that when I move into my own compound later next year, I will have something to start me off on livestock rearing."

"The biggest hardship that I am faced with is lack of money to take care of the education needs of my children. My household depends on agriculture which is very unreliable. I sell part of the harvest in order to raise money that can clear off the education needs. However, it is usually not enough considering the fact that some times the harvest is really poor."

"The biggest hardship that I am faced with is sickness. I feel pain on my chest and back and I believe it is as a result of domestic violence. My late husband used to beat me a lot. I am not able to work as I would wish to because of the pain that I go through."