Wakaya was bought in 1973 by David Gilmour, a gold-mining entrepreneur who has developed the island, building 22 kilometres of roads, a freshwater reservoir, an airstrip, a marina, jetty, village, church, gym, school(Headteacher - Noe Ceinaturaga Duncan) and a recently upgraded runway. He has also developed the Wakaya Club, an exclusive resort. The club has 10 luxury bungalows with a staff of 300. It also houses a large private villa and has four private beaches. Wakaya's populatian is about 300-600 people.