"When I received these transfers I was planning on using them to build myself a proper home because the one I lived in prior was quite old and almost on the verge of collapsing. Therefore, I proceeded to buy a couple of building material which included a couple of doors,windows and about twenty four pieces of iron sheets will cost me out about KES 30,000. Later on I spent KES 14,000 on buying a bed and mattress because I did not have one. Meanwhile I ended up using the balance to pay the Mason."

"I had plans of building a house for myself with the transfers because for over a decade now I have been sharing the same house with my stepson after mine collapsed. Therefore, I was really excited to receive this transfers and I proceeded to about KES 40,000 purchasing thirty four pieces of iron sheets and paying the mason. Afterwards I went on to spend the remaining balance on nutrition since it was a challenge."

"My primary source of income, farming, is no longer profitable, so I'm considering making a different investment that will still be successful. My objective this year is to get four goats because they can survive the drought in our area and are consequently doing well. The demand for them is strong, and they reproduce every year. Hence, by selling some of them in the future, I will be able to make a nice living from them and use the proceeds to support our family. Although I am a religious leader, I essentially make nothing from it, therefore the goats will increase our income."

"I am hoping to finish the ongoing project which is to finish renovating my house. It is my prayer that once I will be able to accomplish this, all my troubles shall come to an end. The fact that I have been seeking shelter from my neighbours when it rains has never been easy."

"The goal that I have at the moment is to complete the payment of the piece of land that I am yet to complete. I still have a debt of $220 to pay the landowner who is disturbing me. He has gone to the level of stopping the ongoing construction of the house due to the pending land charges. I intend to take a loan from our women's group to clear the pending cost of land."

"Due to my failure to pay her bride price, my wife was seized by her parents. Because of my health issues, which have made me jobless, I still do not have any money, so I was unable to save her. I miss her and my son the most at this moment since I'm feeling lonely. Thus, my objective is to get funds so that I can pay the $200 her parents need as her bride's price. Thank God, my health is getting better, and I intend to resume my regular work next month in order to raise that amount. Although I may need some time to complete the task, I am optimistic that I will do so this year so that I can reunite with my family."

"I spent part of my second transfer on clearing a hospital bill for my son who had been diagnosed with stomach issues. We did not have any assets that we could sell to raise the money needed for his treatment. It was a difficult situation for us as a family. I can't thank enough this organisation because we're it not for them, I am not sure what would happen to my son. I am grateful that he is now doing fine and very strong. To add to that, I bought iron sheets, nails and timber to finish constructing my house. The initial one was a mud-walled one and in very poor condition. It was so stressful whenever it rained and sometimes we could end up being rained on till the rains stop. This is because all my neighbour's houses were also in the same state. Later paid school fees of $20 for my grandchildren so that they could not be sent home regularly as they used to. With the remaining amount I bought food for my family which and other household items that I was lacking."

"In my opinion, GiveDirectly does so well by giving support in form of cash. Looking at the things that I was able to do on my own makes me so happy and contented as well. From the Television set that I was able to buy to clearance of school fees for my children makes me and my family extremely happy. Such investments would not have been made possible had it been that we were not given the freedom to choose how to spend the transfer."

"In my opinion, what GiveDirectly does well in this program is that we receive the transfers in lumpsum amounts. This helps in planning as one is in a position to do something huge as compared to when the transfers are given in small instalments. The unlearned recipients are taught how to use mpesa. This has reduced the number of theft cases in the community as most of us managed to change our pins to a more secure code. To avoid household conflict, what needs to be done differently is enrolling all the individuals in the household. During enrollment, those individuals who did not have responsibilities by then were left out of the program yet these are the same people who steal from their old and vulnerable parents. Give Directly staff are very transparent during the enrollment process, they are so keen during the verification process and this ensures that none is left out during registration to the program. Another thing that needs to be done differently is enrolling all the communities in a specific village for uniformity purposes and this will prevent too many complaints coming from the communities that are left out during the registration to the programs."

"Before the transfer, I never had a modern house, I owned a small grass-thatched house which was leaking during the rainy season. I thank Give Directly for the transfers as I managed to build a three-bedroom modern house for kshs 50,000. Initially, I never had peace of mind as it was so tiresome moving some of my valuable items during the rainy season, my young boys too never had adequate space to spend their nights and this was so stressful as they could sleep in a neighbour's house. My peace of mind is finally restored since I built a house. Getting a balanced and regular meal had been the most difficult thing for my young family of three. I used the whole balance of kshs 5000 to stock food for an entire month. We are very grateful for the transfers."