This paper addresses the regional development process initiated in Minas Gerais, with particular emphasis on the participation of regional technical staff throughout the 1930s and 1940s. This is an period of important trans-formations within the government, especially regarding the role played by ideology and planning practice and State interventionism in the economy, allowing, in the Minas case, the rise of the professional category of engineer to decision-making arenas of the State, with repercussions in the preparation and attempt of implementation of projects directed to regional economic development, notably in agriculture and steel making areas. To this end, this text will prioritize two specific groups among this Minas state technical elite: the alumni of the School of Mines of Ouro Preto (in Portuguese, EMOP) and the faculty and students of the College of Agriculture and Veterinary, from Viçosa (in Portuguese, ESAV).
technical elites; development; agriculture; steel works; ESAV; EMOP