"Around 8 o'clock in the evening, as I was cooking dinner, my phone immediately beeped with a message. I asked my aide to check and translate the message for me because I am illiterate. She checked and told me I had received my first $550 transfer from GiveDirectly. My heart melted with joy and gratitude at receiving such a sizable sum of money. Knowing that some of the things I have been unable to do because of a lack of money were going to be addressed made me ululate with joy."

"At around 4 o'clock in the afternoon, we were wrapping up a parent-teacher meeting when I got a message on my phone. I was illiterate and was unable to understand the message until my aide checked when I got home. He checked and found that I had really gotten the promised sum from GiveDirectly. I was grateful for the assistance because I was struggling financially in certain areas and needed it. I immediately saw my ambition of having a crop farm come true."

"We wanted to start a small business and raise livestocks but we failed to get access to enough capital, we went into saving groups but our expectations didn't match the reality and up to now we are not able to start that business. We currently don't have enough land because we don't have money to buy a land that can produce enough for our family , we have to rent from others and we are not able to buy as much as possible inorganic fertiliser that can help us generate extra harvest."

"The main challenge I am facing currently is that the roof of my house is damaged, the clay tiles are very old and damaged at the level that when it rains, tha rain pass through and reach inside, sometimes I think to go find somewhere to stay but I don't have means to do that. The othe challenge is that I don't have any livestock being small or a cow and because of that it's hard for me to get manure to use in my agriculture activities, hence the low production. Growing crops in our lands require the use of manure otherwise the harvest will not be good because the soil is less fertile."

"It is now four years without rain in our village. This has caused drought and famine. It takes me 2 hours to walk from home to Jila water pan. It is approximately 10km. Before the drought, I used to get water from the nearest water pan and it just took 10 minutes to and from the water pan. Lack of fresh water is the current challenge I am facing in life."

"My goal this year is to buy my own tailoring machine. I hope to save my three months transfers to buy a machine at $90 as I have seen the price range is between $90 and $120. I am also foreseeing a situation where I can expand my house a bit. My house is not sufficient we live in a one room house with my three children. I would like to build a house for them to live in. they also currently sleep on the floor and have no bed or mattress."

"I had bought a plot of land before Givedirectly came my way. My goal for the year is to develop this space into a business. I have two house built on it which earns $20 each but the land has the capacity of holding 8 houses. I am planning to build this houses using stones which will make their value higher. I will use this earnings from the houses to improve my food business."

"This year, I want to make an investment in my farm by getting a few goats and some chickens in the hopes that it will help me if I ever run into financial trouble. Additionally, I'll use the money to cover the tuition for my nine children who are still in school. The importance of nutrition cannot be overstated, particularly in light of the ongoing drought we are currently facing."

"I am looking forward to investing on my farm this year. I was hoping to use the money I receive from GiveDirectly to buy a couple of goats and chickens with the intention of gaining financially down the line. I also have intentions of opening up a grocery store business with the money in order to help my husband cater for the day to day needs of our family."

"I had hoped that this year's transfers would enable me to add a second bedroom for my children. My four children, my husband, and I all occupy a single room, so I hoped the extra room would provide us more space and privacy. Additionally, I want to use the money to keep my kids in school by paying their tuition."