"This year, I aim to pursue a hairdressing course, which perfectly aligns with my passion and skills. Unfortunately, my plans were disrupted when my father, who was my main financial support, passed away suddenly in April, just as I was set to join college. However, I remain optimistic. I intend to utilize my savings to fulfill this goal and honor my father's memory by achieving success in my chosen field. Developing a skill that allows me to earn an income will significantly enhance my family's financial stability. I am sincerely grateful to GiveDirectly for being a steadfast source of support during these challenging times."

"This year, my aim is to acquire two oxen that can assist in cultivating land. This investment will greatly benefit me as I can also rent them out, generating additional income. To achieve this goal, I plan to utilize my savings as well as my upcoming transfers. Having this will ensure that my family will have food security from land cultivation as well as an extra source of income. I'm content with the positive changes occurring in my life."

"This year, my main objective is to finish building my two-bedroom house. Our current living space is too small and it's uncomfortable for our family. Once the new house is complete, my family will have a safe and secure place to live, which brings me a great sense of relief and happiness. I'm grateful for the positive changes happening in my life and I look forward to a better tomorrow."

"My objective for this year is to establish an additional source of income to supplement my husband's income. While I have not settled on a specific business yet, I remain optimistic about the possibilities. I intend to utilize the coming transfers to pursue this goal. Having an extra source of income will ensure that our family is adequately provided for, granting me peace of mind. Moreover, it will serve as a lasting legacy even after the program concludes."

"This year, my aim is to set up a vegetable business by the roadside. Given that my husband's income is insufficient, I plan to utilize the upcoming transfers for this venture. Establishing an additional source of income will bring me peace of mind, knowing that my family will be well-provided for. I am thankful for this opportunity to transform my life and look forward to a brighter future."

"This year, my goal is to establish a permanent shop for my tailoring business. Currently, I run the business from my house, which limits its visibility to potential customers. I aspire to finish constructing the shop and expand my stock, offering a wider range of clothing materials for customers to choose from. To achieve this, I plan to utilize my upcoming transfers, hoping that they will enhance my business and increase profits. I'm pleased with the progress I have achieved this far and look forward to the future improvements ahead."

"My aim this year is to build a substantial livestock herd. I plan to allocate a considerable portion of my transfer funds toward acquiring more livestock, especially sheep and goats. Once the herd reaches a sufficient size, I intend to establish a livestock sales business. With the profits from this venture, I will be able to lead a comfortable life. I express deep gratitude to this organization for its financial support, and I eagerly anticipate a brighter future ahead."

"My goal for this year is to expand my shop business. It has been thriving, but I want to enhance it by adding more stock, which will make it more stable. With school closing soon, my strategy is to use my upcoming transfers to achieve this objective. A well-stocked shop not only boosts profitability but also attracts more customers. I'm content with the progress I have made so far and eagerly anticipate a brighter future ahead."

"Receiving my last transfer, I prioritized my children's school fees, two of whom had significant arrears of $360 and $250. I managed to reduce these by paying $100 each, ensuring their education is crucial to me, especially since I had to drop out of school at the elementary level due to financial constraints. This made it tough to find formal employment, further motivating me to ensure my children have better opportunities in the future. In addition, I invested in three goats for $100 to help provide milk for my family. Since buying milk has been too costly, we often rely on just strong tea and porridge. The goats are for milk and as they reproduce, they can be sold and address needs like school fees. Besides doing casual jobs with my husband to sustain our family of seven, I'm also a small-scale farmer, but I haven’t had a successful harvest in five years due to climate challenges resulting in food insecurity. To address this, I bought two bags of maize for $50. To ensure future sustainability, I planted ten mango trees at $100 each. Mangoes thrive here and don't need much water, and with brokers regularly visiting to buy, they represent a potential stable income after three years. To protect these new plantings, I spent $6000 on 20 fence posts, adding to previously purchased wire mesh, to secure the farm. With the remaining $30, I bought new clothes for my children, whose old clothes were worn out. Thank you GiveDirectly for your support."

"All my life, I have longed to provide my family with a place they can call their own home, but achieving this dream was like a mission impossible. My wife and I are parents to eight school-going children, and neither of us has a sustainable job to support our family and buy a piece of land to build our home. Fortunately, my in-law provided us with a small space to build a house for us to stay until we could afford our own place. We both work as farmers, relying on farming on a rental piece of land for both sustenance and to sell surplus produce to generate income for our family's needs. As the years have progressed, farming has become increasingly challenging due to harsh weather conditions, resulting in reduced farm yields which are barely enough to sustain us just for food. This made it difficult for us to support our family and save money to purchase our own piece of land. I felt that my dream of owning a piece of land to call home was slipping away, until GiveDirectly ignited a spark of hope. On this day, I was at home with my wife when I received a mobile money notification from GiveDirectly. I immediately shared the news with my wife, and we were overcome with joy and excitement because this was an enormous blessing for my family. Knowing that at that moment, our lives had made a turn for the better was overwhelming. As a man with a large family, owning a home on our own land was my greatest desire, and that was the first thing that ran through my mind."