"We are currently struggling with payment of school fees and it has drained us financially as a family. I have 3 children all of them in high school and their school fees amounts to $1000 a year. We were lucky this year because they just joined and we sold all the cattle that we had to cover for this. We have however exhausted our investments and we were worried about next year and how we shall be able to meet this expense. We are just livestock farmers and we have invested all our energy in this, the next option would have been selling the land but it's not a sustainable option. We are grateful for the assistance."

"The challenges I have experienced in my life are so many. Having grown up as an orphan, life was so difficult. I lost my parents at the age of 14 when I had just started high school. I had to depend on well-wishers in the community to educate me. I used to be sent home almost every month to collect school fees which was not even there. I still owe the school about $300 4 years later and they have held to my high school certificate so that I cannot apply to any college to further my studies. It is so challenging now to provide for my family of three because I have to depend on casual jobs that are hard to come by lately. I wish I could continue with my college education because this will keep me competitive in the job market."

"I want to build some rental housing on an empty lot in my residential compound so that I may increase my household's income. Since my salary primarily goes toward the bank debts I have been taking out, I cannot rely on it. Regardless of how little I am able to save, I intend to do so in order to advance toward my objective."

"Two of my sons who are enrolled in secondary school will take their final national exams next exams. Like any other parent, I want to see my children succeed in life, and the only way that will happen is if they have a better education. My dream is to see them complete a university education. Even though I don't have a steady source of income, I will use the charcoal sales to save any money I can to help pay for their university education."

"Lack of financial stability is the main source of the challenges that my family is going through. My husband owns a barber shop at Kapkwen market while I have been employed to work in a salon. Because of the high cost of living, few customers are seeking our services and this injures our source of livelihoods. Like today I went to work in the morning and I have returned home empty handed because I could not get even a single customer. I have two children who require special diet like milk and many times we are not in a position to provide"

"My daughter, Tecla, has grappled with a mental illness since the year 2004. She cannot be left alone because she has a tendency of leaving the compound unnoticed and this is dangerous for someone like her. I lock her in the house from morning to evening due to the fact she turns violent. Vandalism is her source of happiness and she likes breaking things like thermos, glasses, and other utensils. This forces me to tie her up on her bed to reduce this destruction. This has been my main challenge and I keep wondering how long will this condition would last."

"I used the entire $550 of the second transfer to buy goats for rearing. I had already planned to do this way before receiving the transfer. We settled on goat keeping as a family since it was the most worthy investment considering their gestation period and how they would easily reproduce. Moreover, we have an open grazing field provided by the government for people living within the area where we are just supposed to pay some amount to be able to use it. I bought 22 goats in total and some have already reproduced as at today. It will henceforth be very much easy for me to get to meet the needs of my family like payment of school fees very easily as well as meet other needs as well. Before receiving this transfer, I have been relying on motorcycle business where I earned a living by offering transport services. I feel like the market is already flooded and I am even thinking of quiting the game soon and fully concentrating on goat keeping and other types of farming. I am so grateful to GiveDirectly for making me realize a dream that would have continued to remain as just a dream had I not received the transfer."

"In my opinion GiveDirectly does very well by giving some form of training before the enrollment process. The dissemination of information is very helpful in dispelling rumours and uncertainties that comes with GiveDirectly funds. Giving cash as a form of aid is another game changer that empowers the recipient to do what pleases them or benefit maximumly from the funds."

"The biggest difference between the time I was not receiving the transfer compared to since I started receiving the transfer is, at first, I have been striving to sustain my family and myself. We had no house on our own. However, through the support of Give Directly, I'm about to be independent."

"RE: The biggest difference in our live for now, is the joy we are experiencing in our hearts. We now have a brand new mistress and a farm to our name"."