Higher education, brain drain and development are the main subjects of this article focused on Mozambique. They are addressed from different perspectives in order to capture the main lines that currently inform theoretical studies regarding these issues, as well as the complexity of social reality and social actors' strategies. First, the author presents the state of the art of the brain drain issue, relating it to increased mobility and international competition for university students and among them. This part of the text is concluded with some brief notes regarding information collected in Mozambique. Based on life stories of Mozambicans with university degrees and who are also development agents in their own country, the second part of this article addresses topics on these people's family identities and the criteria for the legitimacy of Mozambique's elites, relating this aspect to development and higher education.
brain drain; development; higher education; Mozambique