"I was sitting outside my home, enjoying the fresh air. At eight months pregnant, I was feeling a bit tired, but it was a peaceful moment. Suddenly, I heard a notification on my phone. Curious, I reached for it and saw a message from GiveDirectly. They had sent me $200! Excitement rushed through me, and my heart filled with joy. The first thought that came to mind was how I could use this money to pay school fees for my children. With this, they could open the term on time, and their education could continue without  interruptions."

"My current house is small, cramped, and has leaking issues, which makes it difficult for my family to sleep comfortably. To enhance our living conditions, I intend to set aside a portion of my transfers in our savings group. Once the savings reach maturity in December, I will withdraw them and allocate the funds towards constructing a new two-room house for my family, ensuring that we can rest comfortably and stay warm. Furthermore, I aim to expand my livestock by using the transfers to purchase goats, in addition to the chickens I already own. The chickens are expected to multiply, allowing me to sell them in case of any unforeseen emergencies. The goats will increase in number and value, eventually enabling me to exchange them for cows in the future. These cows will then be utilized for plowing my farm. I am truly appreciative and optimistic about my plans as they hold significant importance for me."

"My main objective for the upcoming year is to ensure that my children receive a good education so that they can become self-sufficient. I personally missed out on the opportunity to go to school due to lack of educational support, and I am determined to provide my children with better opportunities. The financial assistance from GiveDirectly has been tremendously beneficial, as it has been covering the costs of my children's education. In addition to this support, I plan to contribute to their education using the income I earn from casual jobs. I am confident that with the help of this program, my children will be able to achieve their goals. I have one child in secondary school and four in primary school, and I am fully committed to ensuring that each of them receives the education they rightfully deserve."

"My plan after completing high school is to pursue a college education. Unfortunately, my mother can't cover my tuition fees alone, so I'm considering poultry farming as an investment. I started with a few chickens, but there was an outbreak that killed all five of them. Initially, I planned to invest in chickens and then exchange them for goats, but after this setback, I've decided to save part of my earnings and buy goats instead. At first, I chose chickens because of their fast multiplication rate, but now I've changed my mindset. I believe that by raising goats and selling them, I'll be able to fund my college education once I complete my secondary school education. This is my goal for the coming year and beyond."

"We live in a one-room iron sheet house where my husband, three children, and I used to sleep together. However, as my children grew older, they started sleeping at their grandmother's house, which made me want to build them their own place. Unfortunately, our reliance on casual jobs and small-scale farming has made it difficult for us to save any extra money since we have other urgent needs to address. After receiving my first transfer, I decided to start building plans and bought five iron sheets for $10 each. I plan to buy the remaining materials from my next transfer and begin construction on my children’s room. At that time, food was a problem because our crops were destroyed by floods, and casual jobs were not frequently available. To address this, I purchased a bag of maize for $20 and other essential food items worth $50, which sustained us for almost two months. Additionally, I bought clothes for my children costing $30 because their previous clothes were worn out, and I didn’t like seeing them in torn clothing. Lastly, I know that livestock production does well in our area, especially sheep, which multiply quickly and are easy to manage. To diversify our income, I decided to buy one sheep for $50, hoping it will help us meet our needs in the future as it reproduces. Thank you, GiveDirectly, for your support."

"I was on my farm harvesting my maize when I heard my phone buzz with a text message. When I checked it, I was overjoyed to see that I had received my first transfer from GiveDirectly. I felt so happy but kept my joy to myself since I was not alone for security purposes. I had planned to use this money to buy sheep, and at that moment, I knew I would finally be able to make my plan a reality. Thank you, GiveDirectly, for making this possible!"

"I had attended a burial in the neighboring village when I heard my phone beep while the ceremony was going on. I quickly checked it and saw that I had received my first transfer from GiveDirectly. I felt so happy inside, but I couldn’t show it because I was surrounded by people mourning. I had already planned how I would use the money, and knowing I could now fulfill all my plans made me feel relieved and excited. I am grateful, GiveDirectly."

"I was at a burial ceremony in the nearby village when I heard my phone buzz. I checked and saw that I had received my first transfer from GiveDirectly. I quickly told my friend sitting next to me, and he was so happy for me. Even though it was a sad day, that moment brought me joy. When I got home, I shared the good news with my family, and my first thought was to use the money to buy food for them."

"I used to have chickens, but they all died early this year due to a disease outbreak, which left me devastated. Besides casual jobs, selling chickens and eggs was my other source of income, and it also provided nutritional value for my family. I thought I would never be able to own chickens again, as I could not afford to replace them. Then, GiveDirectly’s cash came, and it completely changed my thinking. I was able to buy eight chickens and even build a proper chicken coop, something I didn't have before. My previous chickens used to sleep inside our house, which was inconvenient. Thank you, GiveDirectly."

"When I received my first transfer from GiveDirectly, the first thing I did was offer 10% to my church, giving $20 as a way of thanking God because I believed He used GiveDirectly to bless and uplift us. My daughter had recently joined high school and owed about $126 in fees, so to prevent the debt from growing further, I decided to use $100 of the transfer to reduce it. My family relies on my grocery business, while my husband does crop farming and livestock keeping, but we lost our crops and animals to floods this year. This left us depending solely on the business, which led to a reduction in stock. With the transfer, I spent $50 to restock my business, and now my daily earnings have increased from $7 to $20. I used the remaining $30 to buy food items we were lacking, such as sugar and maize flour."