I learned today that discontinued series of the World Development Indicators, WDI, are dropped from the web version. That is, even though data may have been available for a range of years for a particular series, if data are no longer being collected, you will not see them in the online database.
What is a researcher to do? Use the paper version of the WDI in the library’s collection. The Carleton library has the annual issues back to 1998. If you need earlier years, request them through InterLibrary Loan. (You can request them directly through the ILL login, or via WorldCat).