"Lack of financial stability to meet the growing needs of my family has been a challenge. I have been employed by a friend to work as a motorcycle taxi operator where in a day I earn $2 or even less. Prices of food commodities are going up each passing day while the money I earn is not. There was a time I was asking friends to lend me money but since I cannot repay, most of them are not answering my calls. The presence of GiveDirectly speaks hope to desperate people like me."

"It's really hard to get employment opportunities in this area especially given my level of education. I didn't get a chance to go beyond class two. I have been employed as a herdsman within the village now for about three years earning $50 monthly. This amount is extremely low for our needs as a family. I have a wife and two children who are not yet schooling, but I can't even afford food throughout the month! My house is built halfway because I did not have money then to complete it and still I haven't been able over four years that have passed by. It's just a single room mud walled house with a grass thatched roof that is terribly leaking during rainy seasons."

"The GiveDirectly transfers have been so helpful to us, and we are forever grateful. So far, through these transfers, I have bought a decent bed and mattress for my children and also bought a goat for rearing. My current plan with the transfer is to join hands with my spouse and pay my children's school fees. I have six school-going children at different levels of education. I also plan to build a better house for my boys, as the one in which they are currently living is quite small. This will allow them to have space to do their studies."

"Prolonged droughts has made it quite hard to produce crops that we could have been depending on as subsistence farmers. This has led to most villagers resorting to charcoal burning and sell or firewood business to be able to make ends meet. Personally, I tried charcoal burning but we ran out of trees. Finally we decided to do small scale mining of manganese and selling to middle men. This earns us $ 240 monthly as a group of ten workers. We decided to team up because it's not possible to get the required 30 tons so fast working alone."

"The ongoing drought has completely hanged our lifestyle in this village. Initially we used to majorly depend on subsistence farming, but this is no longer possible as it has been continuous drought for the past two years or so. To keep lights on, I have been selling fried fish at a nearby high school to students who are boarding. My husband on the other side is employed by some Indian family in Mombasa town as a casual labor.kame. Together we've been able to feed and educate our five children."

"At my advanced age, I cannot take on vigorous tasks to make money for basic needs like food and school fees for my three children. So, I rely on selling the livestock that I raise to get cash for these needs. However, whatever I generate is only enough for essentials, and it’s difficult to save enough to do other projects like building a better house. As we speak, the roof of my current house is in dire need of repair as it is corroded and perforated to the extent of letting in water when it rains. Courtesy of previous transfers, I have so far bought eight pieces of iron sheets for renovation. My plan is to continue buying iron sheets and hopefully repair my roof to completion by the end of the year."

"I have spent my previous transfers on paying school fees for children, buying food for them, and buying chicken for rearing. I have a goal of going into business, I even hope the chicken am rearing, will become a business. I hope that, as I receive transfers monthly from GD I would buy a chicken which will lead to their increase in number. I plan that at the time the chicken are many, I will be able to sell a number and venture into goat farming."

"Unfortunately, I lack the capacity to derive new goals right now given the hunger issue in my household. I stay with my two wives, mother, and mother-in-law, who solely rely on me for provision. Working as a school security guard, the $35 I earn monthly can hardly secure food for more than three weeks, which could leave us starving for the remaining part of the month. This is when the cash transfers come to the rescue and ensure that we have our meals catered for. Unless I find a better source of income, I plan to continue using my cash transfers solely on food."

"I am operating a kiosk at home, a job that I have been doing for 3 years now. Currently, I am experiencing financial challenges because the profit from this work is very low and some of my customers have become unreliable. Imagine giving someone goods on credit and ending up unpaid the bill! It has been a life full of stress because I feel like I do the job as my routine since I don't get my desired profit. I have always hoped to expand this job but it's very hard due to the low capital which has not grown over time. What a life!"