"As the main provider for my family of 9, our biggest hurdle is covering the school fees for my children. I rely mainly on casual work to make ends meet but often struggle to earn enough to meet our basic needs. This is especially challenging because our region has been experiencing poor rainfall, resulting in a significant decrease in our harvest this year. As a result, we've had to purchase expensive food from shops, further straining our finances and leaving us unable to allocate sufficient funds for school fees. Last year, there were over 3 weeks when my children were unable to attend school due to our financial situation. With no other source of income, we were forced to sell a portion of our land (measuring 50x100 pieces) for $500, but I only received a down payment of $300 and have yet to receive the remaining amount."

"Paying school fees for my three children who are in secondary school as a single parent is causing me a lot of stress. I rely solely on selling firewood, but the income is not enough to cover all my household expenses as well as my children's school fees. My mother used to help me out financially, but she is now 72 years old and has used up all her savings. I am finding it very difficult to meet my needs as a single mother. I need to find a way to raise capital for my firewood business to make it more sustainable."

"Housing is the current challenge I am facing in life. The family lives in a one roomed house that also serves as the family kitchen. Culturally I cannot share a house with a daughter in-law so when she is cooking in the house then I will be forced for seek shelter from neighbors or suffer the strong winds outside. I do casual jobs of taking care of other people's cows at a fee of $30 per month which caters to food only. The house lacks privacy."

"In the coming year and beyond, my primary focus is on building a spacious one-room house with a verandah. Our current house is quite small, and with two boys who are quickly approaching adulthood, it's becoming clear that they will soon need their own space and privacy, especially to have a room where they can relax and spend time with their friends. Right now, this isn't possible since we all share the same room. To make this dream a reality, I joined a merry-go-round savings group, where I diligently save $20 each month toward building this new house. I'm grateful that I’ve never missed a payment, thanks to the consistent support from GiveDirectly. I truly appreciate the financial assistance they’ve provided. Once the new house is built, my husband and I will move into it, leaving our current home for the boys. I'm optimistic that we will achieve this goal, especially with the strong support from my spouse."

"My house is collapsing, and my husband doesn't have a stable job to afford the repairs. We have three children in school who need fees and food. I've been considering starting a grocery business, but I'm struggling to find the capital. I often have sleepless nights, especially during windy weather, worrying that the house might collapse while we're asleep. I only feel happy when I'm outside the house. I fear that one day the house will fall while we're sleeping."

"My husband is working as a carpenter in kilifi. This job earns him a basic pay of $300 if customers are many in a month. With the current inflation, there's alot of fluctuation in the number of customers and in a month he can make as little as $100. This amount can not sustain our daily expenses as a family hence making life very hard for us. I have two children who are in school( primary level). They have been having constant on and off of classes due to the lack of tuition fees. This has significantly affected their perfomances and as parent it feel very bad. Therefore, lack of sustainable source of income is the most challenging part of my life."

"As the head of a family of 8, we are encountering a myriad of challenges such as covering school fees, obtaining bedding, and addressing food insecurity. Currently, the most pressing issue is the inability to meet school fees, negatively impacting not only my son but also my grandchildren. Since losing my wife in 2004, I have assumed the responsibility of being the sole provider, making it extremely challenging to fulfill parental obligations such as ensuring that school fees are paid for my children and grandchildren. Their parents, who are absent from the village, have shown little involvement in this matter. The primary cause of the school fees dilemma is the limited income I earn from my small donut business. On an average day, I only manage to earn around $5. Considering the size of the family, this amount is insufficient to cover our needs, particularly in terms of school fees. My son, Kennedy, completed high school last year but has been unable to pursue further education due to financial constraints, forcing him to take on odd jobs and even join the motorcycle taxi industry. The gravity of the situation is such that my grandchildren have been forced to stay at home for over 2 weeks due to the inability to pay their school fees."

"This is a family of six and out those, four are still in school. Two are in secondary school and three in primary level. I highly consider education a very key to someone's life. This is evident from our neighbors children. My husband has been working as masonry for over 20 years now. His age has advanced such that he can't do his work again. We are all here depending on farming. Because of the current trending of rains, crop production is significantly affected. This leave us with goat farming as the only hope to keep the children in school. The children are constantly being sent home to collect school fees which a times they have to remain at home for more than a week. This situation has affected them heavily and as a parent, the whole pain falls on me."

"I am currently in college, and since this is my final year, I want to focus on my studies. I plan to use my transfers to gradually purchase the necessary items to ensure a seamless stay at school. I am confident that if I achieve good grades, I will likely secure a job. However, if that doesn’t happen, I also have the option to open my own carpentry workshop. Once I finish college, I aim to establish my own workshop, which will allow me to earn an income to support myself and my younger siblings who are still in school. Additionally, I am working towards building my own house and have already started buying iron sheets to achieve this goal. Each month, when I receive my transfer, I use part of it to buy iron sheets and the rest to support my stay in school. I am very grateful for the financial support from GiveDirectly."

"With the support from GiveDirectly's first transfer. I allocated $50 towards my son's school fees and $45 for my daughter's fees to reduce their arrears, which initially totaled about $500. Given that I had been depending on charcoal and crop farming for income, losing 2 acres of my 2.5-acre maize crop to floods was devastating. The remaining 0.5 acres are still being harvested, but I expect to get only about 3 bags of maize instead of the 80 bags I had hoped for, leaving me with a $300 loan. Additionally, I spent $64 on a bed and mattress for my children, as they had been sleeping on the floor, which was risky due to snakes. I used the remaining funds to buy food to sustain us for some time. Thank you, GiveDirectly."