Welsh Development Agency

Welsh Development Agency (WDA; Welsh: Awdurdod Datblygu Cymru) was an executive agency (or QUANGO) and later designated an Assembly Sponsored Public Body (ASPB). Established in 1976, it was tasked with rescuing the ailing Welsh economy by encouraging business development and investment in Wales, clearing derelict land and encouraging growth of local businesses. In April 2006 the WDA was abolished and its functions were transferred into the Welsh Government.

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

The organisation worked to secure entrepreneurial growth in Wales by increasing the number of startup businesses and by persuading multinational companies to relocate or open subsidiary facilities in Wales. Finance Wales is a public limited company set up by the WDA and still providing funding to Welsh businesses.

Employing several hundred workers, the WDA was argued to be one of Wales's most important institutions with a network of offices worldwide and their headquarters in the former Bank of Wales building in Cardiff. In its 30-year history the WDA reports claim credit for helping to create hundreds of thousands of jobs and securing billions of pounds in investment. It even enjoyed the praise of then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who claimed it was doing a marvellous job. The WDA had an annual budget of approximately £70 million per year.

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