At the age of five, he moved with his family to Aden in South Yemen.

After graduation he was hired by ADNOC selling lubricants and gasoline.

In 1979 he started his engineering education at the University of Oklahoma and later worked for several American companies including Chevron Corporation and California's Metropolitan Transport Authority.

[2] In July 2010 he was visiting Hargeisa and met with Ahmed Mahamoud Silanyo who wanted him to join his possible future cabinet after the 2010 election.

[3] Dualeh lived in Stevenson Ranch, California with his wife and three children until he relocated to Hargeisa to fulfill his duties as Minister of Mining, Energy & Water Resources of Somaliland.