"Being a single mother of two, life has not been easy for me. At 22 years, I feel like I am going through challenges that are way above my age. My family is going through financial challenges that are occasioned by lack of a stable income. I am a poultry farmer collecting at least 20 eggs per day which I sell locally for $0.2 each. I have a 2-month-old baby who requires pampers which are expensive to buy."

"With the GD transfer, my goal has been to support my children's education. Currently, I have two school-going children, Karisa and Harusi. Since they have minimal disturbance, they have registered improvement in their academics. My additional goal for this year is to purchase and raise more goats. Currently, I have two goats. I shall sell them later when I am stuck raising money for my children. Part of the transfer will help me to get food for the children because the situation is unbearable with low crop yields for the previous seasons. I am grateful to GiveDirectly for its continuous support."

"Climate change has adversely impacted the rainfall pattern in my area. For instance, the last time we had a heavy downpour was in September 2022 but it only lasted for a week. Since then, rainfall has been seasonal and almost a nightmare. Even though I wish to produce food in my garden, I am saddened that the climate is harsh as nothing can grow on it. My family of 5, concurrently cannot access clean water as we depend on the seasonal river which is 2 kilometres away. Therefore I cannot even irrigate the crop I have been intending to plant on my farm."

"We rely on our small scale businesses where we deal in groceries and livestock selling for our sustainability in this household. Lately, these businesses have been dwindling and we attribute this to the worsening economic situation in the country. We used to make a profit of $10 last year but currently we are only making $4 from our businesses and this is affecting our livelihood negatively. We are currently struggling to manage these finances to maintain our groceries' business and find food for the 6 of us at the same time."

"Currently only one thing affects my livelihood negatively and that is poor housing and habitat condition. As you have seen this house structure is in a dilapidated state and it doesn't offer me the desired comfort. For me to attain comfortability in my home I feel like I need a mattress on my sleeping space, cement for the floor and iron sheets for the roof. However, I am unable to afford this luxury due to financial constraints. I make less than $10 a month and this is not enough to carter for my basic needs as well as improve my house at the same time."

"Hunger and poor housing are my only challenges at present. Since I didn't harvest anything from my maize field this year, me and my grandson, Black Gusto struggle to find food by relying on pieceworks daily. On most days we sleep on empty stomachs due to lack of food. As if that's not enough, this house doesn't do us any justice for it leaks heavily when it rains and gives us restless nights. These are the hurdles that I feel make my life harder."

"Lack of money to improve my house is the only challenge I am currently facing. I make $20 a month from my fish selling business and in all honesty with the rising cost of commodities this is not enough for me to sustain my family and at the same time carter for house improvement projects. As much as this structure offers me shelter it doesn't offer me the comfort of a home I desire and this bothers me alot currently."

"I and my ex husband, Kennedy Lipenga got divorced in Mangochi back in 2020 and ever since it has been me struggling to provide for myself and my son, Brian Phalula here. I have 4 children in total, 3 of them are with their father in Mangochi. Of all the challenges I am facing at present, I feel like two stand out the most, thus, hunger and lack of a decent and comfortable sleeping space. These bring me constant worry and stress whenever I think about them."

"Our biggest challenge is food. I have 6 children and feeding and clothing them is a challenge. This is because I have no stable source of income. I make charcoal but sometimes there's no one to buy and that leaves me with no money. I end up going to out to find casual work just to put food on the table. Yesterday I went to do ground work on a farm to afford the food we're eating today. I farm but with no money for fertiliser and the harsh weather conditions here I yield nothing, which is further impoverishment."