I've done months of touring (not years at a time) on steel, aluminum, magnesium, and carbon. Only the steel let me down (broke).

At the very minimum, have a competent wheelbuilder go over and tension your spokes properly and tightly. If he says you need a rebuilt, do it.

You have the exact proper attitude. When **** happens, solve it. Since you do not have a lot of money, put whatever you can into wheels. If the spokes are high quality and tight, given you are you using a relatively wide and low pressure tire, you will probably be ok. That is where I spent my money as a poor tourist and cannot recall having a single broken spoke.