Kuala Lampur, Jan. 7 -- The global energy debate continues to recycle a powerful illusion: that natural resource abundance automatically translates into national prosperity.

History, however, offers a far more sobering lesson. Oil, gas, and minerals are not wealth in themselves; they are merely inputs.

Wealth is created only when resources are governed competently, developed by skilled institutions, protected by political stability, and embedded within a national strategy that transcends local pride, short-term politics, and episodic ambition.

This distinction matters because the world is full of countries that were rich in resources yet poor in outcomes. Venezuela remains the most visible cautionary example. Despite possessing the wor...