"I received a Mpesa message, and after reading it, I knew it was from GiveDirectly because I could easily understand the content. The indicated amount matched the promised amount, so I knew I had received the first transfer. I wasn't expecting any other money in my account at the time, and as such I went ahead and collected, confident that it was what I was expecting to use on my enlisted plans."

"When I saw my neighbors celebrating with lots of movement in the direction of the shopping center for those who wanted to collect their money on the spot, I got a signal that the transfer had been received. My husband had my phone and was not at home at the time. I had to call him and inquire because I could not confirm. I was overjoyed to learn that we had received the promised $550 and only needed to agree on spending before withdrawing it with my spouse later that day."

"For the past year, I have purchased at least two liters of milk daily for my family of four. This would set me back at least $8 per week. I spent $200 on a heifer after receiving the first transfer, hoping it will be productive when it calves. I am still buying milk and expect to do so for another year before it matures enough to provide enough milk for my family. I also spent $50 on household items, including food for my children. I decided to save the rest of the money in preparation for expanding a bakery business I am currently running. Even though I have been selling cakes locally, I have always wished to expand by introducing a mixing machine geared to reduce labor costs, improve quality, and expand a venture into a wider range of customers. The machine costs $700, and I am hoping that the second transfer will help me purchase one. I am thankful for the progress I have made with the first transfer and hope to see more transformation in the coming months."

"I feel that Givedirectly has done extremely well for me through the cash transfer program. This has helped me to pay for a cow. To own a cow has been my plan longtime ago but couldn't afford the cost until when Givedirectly started working in my community. However, I am a pride owner of a cow which I have long been wishing for. I believe that few years from now I will be a successful farmer in animal husbandry."

"Receiving money from GiveDirectly was more of a blessing from above. It was an opportunity for me to transform my life for the better. I'm married with three children. My business entails selling goats whereas my wife sells onions. Upon receipt of the transfer, as a family, we spent $100 on buying iron sheets to construct a decent house. Our house was little seeing we had relocated here from our ancestral home. I spent $100 to buy seats and furnished the house. An additional $200 helped boost our businesses and lastly, we spent some amount on foodstuffs and clothes for the family. I'm grateful that I was able to accomplish so much in such a short duration which wasn't possible before due to our unreliable income."

"My husband and I had prior planned on how best to spend our transfer. Upon receipt of the transfer, of $300 we used it to stockpile our retail shop. This would boost our income. I also spent some of the money to renovate our incomplete house. I had left it incomplete to prioritize the little earnings on other household needs since I'm the sole breadwinner after the retirement of my husband. We are fortunate that we have three children. I feel my living standards have been greatly uplifted because of the unconditional cash transfer and thus, I'm grateful."

"I am a single mother of 3, and they all look after me to fend for them. I depend on casual work on other people's farms to get money to buy food, these menial Jobs have become so scarce to come by. The situation has further been worsened by the increased cost of living, the price of commodities has shot up threefold, and life has indeed become hard and unbearable. We are forced to survive on one meal per day, we delay lunch meal to around 5 pm and the same meal also act as dinner. This is not the life I desire or wish my children to have. I am shaken again and again, the suffering is not going away."

"I am old and sick, due to my age I can hardly walk, and I suffer from lower back pain and gout. I also have chronic ulcers that have persisted for some time now, efforts to seek medication have not assisted much and I have not gotten enough medical attention for the health challenges I have been facing because of a lack of funds. This has made my normal life extremely difficult since I cannot do household chores, I am assisted to stand and I use sticks to move around albeit for short distances. I depend on relatives and the government cash transfers have assisted me a great deal although it is meager and delayed to be released. This has caused me a lot of pain and has left me to live a life of misery and destitution."

"Water has been the greatest challenge in this area. Even though there is the availability of piped water, in the nearby shopping center accessing it is challenging. We then have to purchase and it costs us a lot."

"I am a father of six working as a small-scale business owner while my wife is a subsistence farmer. Five of our kids are still in school, and I plan to raise more money to cater to their education needs. To realize this, I plan to expand my mini-shop with $500 to maximize my profits. I will borrow a loan from our merry-go-round group which I will top up with the income from the business to actualize this goal."