For most of history, the primary industries that had constituted the bulk of economic activity in Qatar were fishing and pearling. Throughout the majority of its history, the region has enjoyed considerable prosperity due to its strategic location and sporadic trading activities undertaken from both the eastern and western fronts. Of the two, the latter had the most significant influence over the region’s economy until the early 20th century. However, after the collapse of the pearling industry due to the introduction of the Japanese cultured pearl, the economy of the region took a downturn. The discovery of oil and natural gas reserves in the 1940s led to the development of the oil and natural gas industry in the 1970s. This industry has solely been responsible for the exponential growth of the nation. While the oil production rates are expected to decrease as the oil reserves diminish by 2023, the vast natural gas reserves, which rank as being the third largest in the world, of the nation are sufficient to last several decades at least.
The establishment of the several extraction facilities has considerably raised the worth of the economy as well as its daily oil and natural gas production. These two industries are the primary driving force behind the Qatari economy. The government is planning to develop other industries to facilitate a more diverse economy and plans have been made for Qatarization undertaken by the government, which seeks to bring Qatari citizens into commanding and authority positions in the national industries.