FALKLAND ISLANDS:Twenty-five years ago the Falkland Islands were cutting peat, today they are drilling for oil.
Before 1982 the population was in steady decline, the economy was tiny and dominated by wool. The main fuel was peat, there were few roads, and life outside the capital, Stanley, centred around settlements on a small number of vast ranch-style farms.
The years since have been marked by sustained economic growth and a move away from the dependence on wool.
While in 1982 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) stood at just £4 million (€6m), last year it had hit £75 million (€112m) and the population, which had dipped to 1,800 in 1980, had bounced back to more than 3,000.
Sheep still outnumber man more than 200 to one but the key to transformation has been the rich waters around the islands.
A strict marine conservation policy has generated a mini bonanza for government coffers - but the real boom time may yet be ahead. Initial testing has found signs of oil and gas offshore and on land there may even be gold.
Exploratory drilling has found evidence of a rich source rock capable of producing large quantities of oil. In the past decade oil and gas have been brought to the surface, but it remains to be seen if the quantities are commercial.
New drilling is expected to get under way this year. Traces of gold have been found in streams and three potential sources have been identified. However, the government is being careful not to count chickens and is playing down talk of an impending oil boom. Should there be commercial quantities of oil and gas, the income would likely be pumped into a fund to pay for long-term development similar to that in Norway. Top of the agenda would be a commitment to pay for the islands' own defence.
Over the past 20 years, the main driver of economic self-sufficiency has been a less glamorous resource - fish. Four years after the war a strictly regulated marine conservation zone was set up to allow the islands to sell licences to foreign companies.
Stocks were to be closely managed over a 200-mile radius, with access limited. But catches of Illex, one of the main species of squid, have varied dramatically - possibly as a result of global warming. New longer-term licences have just been introduced in the hope that fishing can be exploited further while keeping stocks under scrutiny.
But the fishing boom could face its biggest challenge yet. New laws under consideration in Argentina could force trawler operators to chose between Falklands' waters and those of its bigger neighbour.
Tourism is already a significant contributor to the local economy - in summer the almost daily calls from gigantic Antarctic cruise ships double the population of Stanley in an afternoon. - (PA)