"Our biggest problem is the security of our home. We live in an open compound. It's not safe to stay like this. There's always some fear of the unknown. We have about 30 goats and we sleep worried about their safety. Wild animals such as hyenas or wild dogs can strike at any time giving us losses. They have previously attacked twice in the last 2 years. This makes us worried about losing some of the goats that give us income."

"It's very difficult living in this village now. When my children were younger I had over 50 goats. This helped us raise some income to support them by selling. Now we only have 5, and educating and feeding our family has made us sell the most. Our last-born daughter is now studying at a medical school to become a nurse. The few goats we have means it's hard raising an income. This has made our lives difficult as a family."

"Icyo GiveDirectly ikora neza ni ukuntu idashaka inyungu mu bantu ahubwo igashyira imbere kubateza imbere. Kubwanjye rwose byose ibikora neza cyane."

"Paying fees for my four grandchildren has been the biggest challenge, and ever since I began receiving the transfers, my objective has been to make sure that I use the transfers to pay fees for them on time. Their father has been ill and bedridden for almost six years due to a stroke that has paralyzed him. He is incapacitated, and he cannot work anymore. He depends on me for everything, and the children are now under my care. My goal is to ensure that I pay fees on time so that they can achieve their educational goals despite the financial hardships that I am facing, being that I am just a subsistence farmer with no source of income."

"Before receiving the transfers, my five children had been away from school for almost three weeks. This is because the teachers were tired of listening to my false promises of clearing the fees on time. It all happened because I relied on making charcoal and sometimes working on my neighbor's farms to generate an income. The money I got could hardly sustain all our basic needs, including food. Sometimes I was forced to borrow from friends, though it was a bit embarrassing. However, my children ended up being on the bad end more so for providing for their fees. Two had assured me that they would drop out and join me in hustling and supporting the other three, who were still in primary school. This broke my heart, and I felt that I had failed them as a parent. Therefore, having cleared the fees has brought so much joy into my life. Also, they will have ample time in school, which will boost their performances and, hence, a promising future."

"It is still fresh in my mind that particular evening when I was doing laundry when I received the good news that GiveDirectly had blessed me with cash transfers. I was overjoyed with happiness knowing that my children would finally return to school after staying home for almost two months due to the arrears."

"With the iron sheet roofing, I can collect rainwater and use it for every domestic use, saving us from walking long distances to fetch water. Not forgetting that we are now having a better house compared to what we had before, which was not even fit to be called a home."

"I bought four goats for $15 and one dairy cow for $15, knowing that with animal products in my home, I will be covered financially because I will sell one and keep the rest as they multiply. The dairy cow I purchased was still a young one, but in no time it will be mature and will be able to begin producing milk, which will be extremely beneficial in that I will cut on the amount of money spent buying it and also sell the extra to earn some income. I also had to spend $4 on planting 2.5 acres of land where I planted maize, and I am hopeful that I will reap as much as I planted. This time, I purchased plenty of food for $5 in order to save time and money. Food is expensive at our village's small kiosk, so I decided to go to a nearby center and buy it in bulk so that I could spend less money. I was also able to pay school fees and buy a uniform for my child, who had been going to school in home clothes due to my inability to buy the uniform; she is happy since she is no longer the odd one out, and she will no longer be sent home for school expenses. Aside from that, I was able to save $10 from the transfers, which will assist me in managing my daily needs in the house and maybe when an emergency arises."

"I was just relaxing near the watering hole like I always do while looking after some livestock when I got a message confirming that some money had been sent to my account and on further scrutiny realized that it is the amount that Givedirectly had promised to send us. I was so excited and immediately went to a nearby M-pesa agent to have it confirmed. I immediately knew that the plans of buying a dairy cow would finally materialize!"

"Nkuko ndangije kubigaragaza maze gukataza kubera inkunga ya GiveDirectly, mu myaka iri imbere rero ndizera ko nzagera ku iterambere rirambye nkuhaza muri byose ubukene bukaba amateka kuko inkunga ya GiveDirectly ari umusingi ukomeye nzubakiraho amateka meza yo gusezerera ubukene bugasigara ari amateka, rwose ndumva mu myaka iri imbere nzaba ndi umuhinzi w'intangarugero wihaza agasagurira n'isoko."