"I am currently facing the challenge of struggling to raise school fees for my daughter who is Tororo Girls Secondary school in senior four and the son at Uganda Christian University where I have sold many plots of land and we are left with only one plot of land hence hindering us from having cultivation leading to few sources of food. I also face a problem of water which affects our house whenever it rains and with this, we even lack to sleep when it happens putting us in hard life. Poverty has also hit my family in that we can not raise capital to start up even a small business which can earn us daily income in order to meet basic needs easily."

"The biggest challenge Iam facing is that the house we stay in is not ours so I have a worry that the owner may come anytime and send us away which will worse the stule of living because we shall have no where to sleep. Another a challenge is having a small piece of land which at times think of selling in order to build a house but then ask myself many questions. When I sell land, where will I cultivation from to get food for my people and Another question is that where will I construct the house and the answer cones back to staying in someone's house other than selling the only piece of land have in life. I have also failed to school fees that can take my children to good schools hence leaving them in local Government schools which do perform well."

"My goal is to start a grocery business by the end of February this year, I will be sourcing the vegetables from Samburu. I'll need a capital of $120 which I intend to raise from selling my goats. I have settled on a business because it will generate income quickly since there is ready market for vegetables in my village. I'm sure if this business stabilises, It will help me to pay school fees for my children and also buy food for my family."

"I currently face a challenge of water that comes from under ground when it rains which affects the house and even lack where to sleep and just up to morning. Another problem that disturbs us is landslides and flash floods which at one time happened and stones killed people hence leaving us in fears that we are to die anytime."

"Living in a small dilapidated house with my three children and wife is such a difficult situation for a parent. We always live in fear not knowing when the house will come down and we will be left homeless. Upon receiving the second transfer, amidst so many responsibilities the first priority was to see that the house was at least renovated. I set out to buy all the required materials for the construction, I spent $200 which is inclusive of the mason fee. My family is now grateful to have a decent house to shelter. My wife and I are livestock and cash crop, farmers. We bought one dairy cow for $220, which produces at least two liters of milk daily that we sell and buy whatever we do not have in the house. I also replaced our old bedding and bought a few pairs of clothes for the entire family at a cost of $80. I spent the remaining $30 on groceries that would last us for a while. Without the assistance of GiveDirectly, it would not have been simple, thus we are thankful."

"I am employed as a casual cook at a nearby school where I earn $25 per month. My husband is a motorcycle rider and he gets at least $4 - $5 daily, but since the bike is a hire purchase he has to pay some amount weekly to settle the pending debt. Together we are blessed with two children, but only one is in school at the moment. The house we live in is not in a good condition, the roof is old and leaks during rainy days. Upon receiving the second transfer, we agreed with my husband to have our house renovated thus we spent $300 to buy all the required materials and to pay the mason. We also bought a solar panel for which we only paid a deposit of $50. With the remaining money, I bought some new pairs of school uniforms for my child and other clothes for the entire family. I also replenished foodstuff in the house that would last us for a month."

"I am grateful to GiveDirectly for giving me such a large sum for the first time and allowing me to choose how to spend it. The assistance and the clear enrollment process helped us understand the entire project and the source of the funding that we were receiving. That was a job well done."

"I am a father of eight children (four girls and four boys) all of whom are still in school. Paying their school fees has been an uphill task since I do not have a stable job, same to my wife. They have been sent home a couple of times and this breaks my heart to see their studies being cut short often. Also, the situation at home is terrible since we had been living in a very small house together with my children. I had been sleeping out in the cold so as to allow my wife and kids to have room for themselves. Upon receiving the second transfer, my first priority was to build a two-roomed house that would accommodate us all. I bought all the building materials and got a mason to do the work. The total cost was $300 and I was glad to see the project complete. I replaced the ripped mattress and bed with new ones costing $70. I also managed to do some minor repairs to the latrine which was almost falling down, for this, I spend $30. I bought eight chickens for each of my children so that they could rear them at home and maybe sell them if need be to cater to a basic need at home. With the remaining money, I bought school uniforms for my children and foodstuff for the family."

"The aim of investing in goats is that they are cheap to maintain and they have read markets since they are affordable and thus can be converted to monetary value anytime the need arises. Based on that, I came up with a saving plan where I will be buying a goat in every two transfers. This plan will enable me to have at least six goats by the end of the year apart from the ones which will be born in between."

"I have four children currently enrolled in school and the transfers have been helping me to clear their fees on time. My expectation is to see them achieve their education goals despite the financial challenges I am facing. My objective is to ensure that they continue with their studies without any interruption concerning school fees. I believe once they excel, they will bring a change to my household. I am also planning to save some money every month to enable me to renovate my house which is in a bad condition. I began saving some years back before GiveDirectly's transfers, and I am hoping to save more to achieve this goal. I am aiming at replacing the roof with new iron sheets since its dilapidated and rebuilding the walls with stones to be a permanent house."