10 Nations That Went from Rags to Riches

In the 19th century, this landlocked European nation was poor. Today it has the highest GDP per capita in the world because of banking, steel and advanced manufacturing.

Today this alpine nation is synonymous with wealth and economic success. But 150 years ago, it was dirt poor.

Hardship prevailed in this nordic nation during the 19th century. It got rich off of its hydroelectric power industry and oil reserves.

Prior to the discovery of enormous reserves of oil and natural gas, this tiny sultanate nation was dirt poor.

Japanese occupation left this nation poor. In 1962, its leader Park Chung-hee, implemented a Five Year Plan that got the country on track to economic success.

A civil war in the 1930s and a repressive dictatorship left this Mediterranean nation poor. Since then it has transitioned into an affluent modern democracy. Its economy took a hit during the recession of 2008 to 2013 but it is now back on the road to economic success.

When this tiny nation gained independence from Malaysia in 1965, it was plagued by poverty. Today it is a glittering first-world metropolis.

This Persian Gulf nation was among the poorest in the world when it was founded in 1932. The discovery of oil in 1938 is what made this nation wealthy today.

Oil discovered in the 1940s in this tiny Persian Gulf state, led to it having one of the highest GDPs per capita in the world today.

Back in the early 1990s, this nation was one of the poorest countries in Europe. In the late 2000s, growth skyrocketed during the so-called 'Celtic Tiger' period.