The WDA was established under the Welsh Development Agency Act 1975 under the then Secretary of State for Wales John Morris MP for Aberavon.

In its 30-year history the WDA reports claim credit[6] for helping to create hundreds of thousands of jobs and securing billions of pounds in investment.

The Agency reported to John Redwood, David Hunt and William Hague as Secretaries of State for Wales under the Thatcher and Major governments.

With South Glamorgan County Council, the WDA helped establish Admiral Insurance plc, which is now a FTSE 100 Company.

Success included partnerships with newly created 22 local authorities in the mid 1990s on urban regeneration and Town Improvement Grants.

It led the successful bid with Sir Terry Matthews for the Ryder Cup at Celtic Manor Resort, which was being built at the time near Newport.

The WDA ceased to exist on 1 April 2006, when it and two other ASPBs - the Wales Tourist Board and ELWa - were merged into the Welsh Government.

The Swansea AM Andrew Davies made the decision to abolish the WDA in conjunction with the First Minister of Wales Rhodri Morgan.

In the early 1990s the WDA attracted controversy when its chairman, Gwyn Jones, a businessman, was appointed by the then Welsh Secretary, Peter Walker after meeting him at a Conservative Party fundraising lunch.