Salva Dut, born December 1, 1974, is an internet personality, an activist, and a household name in Africa. He is the creator and president of Water for South Sudan, a company that offers remote South Sudanese villages access to clean, safe water.

Wiki Profile

Full Name:	Salva Dut
Date of Birth:	December 1, 1974
Place of Birth:	South Sudan
Nationality:	Sudanese
Occupation:	Activist
Net Worth:	$1.5 million
Wife/Spouse:	Married

Early Life and Education

The activist was born on December 1st, 1974, in a small community belonging to the Dinka tribe in southwest Sudan.

He has two sisters and three brothers. During the civil war in his nation, Salva Dut’s family was divided from him. Only one of his three brothers, Ring, lived to see the end of the American Civil War.

He studied at Rochester, New York’s Monroe Community College. He took on three jobs to help pay for his college tuition.

The war reached his hamlet in 1985, during the two-decade-long civil upheaval that was rapidly expanding across the nation between northern and southern Sudan, and he was separated from his family.

It was when he was eleven years old. He was one of the 17,000 000 youngsters who set out on a journey between Ethiopia and Kenya to seek safety during the brutal war. The boys were dubbed the Lost Boys of Sudan in lore.

Dut and the Lost Boys of Sudan traveled for five years in challenging circumstances like continuous military and animal attacks. Most of the lads passed away from illnesses, thirst, and malnutrition.

1,500 boys were guided by Salva for 800 kilometers through the desert from Ethiopia to Sudan and finally to a camp for refugees in Kenya.

Before being resettled in the United States of America in 1996, he lived in a barbed-wire-fenced camp for six years at the Kakuma Refugee Camp, which was under the control of the United Nations.

Salva Dut was one of the 3,800 Lost Boys of Sudan who traveled to the US, Canada, and Australia with the assistance of the UN and the US, where they were welcomed by families.

Family members of Salva Dut who survived the violence and stayed in southern Sudan had long since forgotten about him and believed he had passed away.

Despite the fact that he believed his family had also been slaughtered, he was adamant about returning to South Sudan, his country of origin.

After nearly 16 years apart, Mawien Dut, Salva’s father, and Salva were reunited. Dut learned in 2002 through another refugee that his father was still alive but in a critical condition in a UN clinic.

His father had parasites and infections that were transmitted by water. Dut went back to his house to reunite with his family.

Mawien’s condition motivated his son to raise money and dig water wells to provide South Sudan with clean, safe water.

He made the humanitarian mission his life’s work and was devoted to it. Water for South Sudan was born out of this.

Career

On November 19, 2016, the activist delivered an emotional and motivational speech at TEDxBeaconStreet in Boston.

This lecture was delivered at a TEDx event, which is a local community-led, independently organized TED conference.

Salva Dut is an inspiration to many thanks to his valiant life story and modest demeanor. Many who work in humanitarian missions find inspiration in him.