The Ministry of Public Works (Spanish: Ministerio de Obras Públicas) is the cabinet-level administrative office in charge of "planning, directing, controlling and building the public infrastructure, as well as the conservation and management of them"^{[citation needed]} within Chile. It is also responsible for the "management, distribution, use and conservation"^{[citation needed]} of all the water resources within the country. They answer directly to the President of Chile. Since 11 March 2022, the Minister of Public Works is Mr. Juan Carlos García Pérez de Arce.

History

The office was first created by law of 21 June 1887, under President José Manuel Balmaceda as the Ministry of Industry and Public Works. Since then it has undergone several reorganizations during its history, reflected in its different names:

• Ministry of Industry and Public Works 21 June 1887 - 20 May 1910
• Ministry of Industry, Public Works and Railroads 20 May 1910 - 19 December 1924
• Ministry of Public Works and Roads 19 December 1924 - 21 March 1925
• Ministry of Public Works, Commerce and Communication Roads 21 March 1925 - 3 October 1927
• Ministry of Foment 3 October 1927 - 21 October 1942
• Ministry of Public Works and Communication Roads 21 October 1942 – 1953
• Ministry of Public Works 1953 - 13 December 1967
• Ministry of Public Works and Transport 13 December 1967 - 8 July 1974
• Ministry of Public Works 8 July 1974 – present

Titulars

Ministers of Industry and Public Works

Picture	Name	Entered Office	Exited Office	Notes	Appointed by
	Pedro Montt Montt	28 June 1887	13 April 1888		José Manuel Balmaceda
	Vicente Dávila Larraín	13 April 1888	2 November 1888
	Prudencio Lazcano Echaurren	2 November 1888	21 January 1889
	Enrique Salvador Sanfuentes Andonaegui	21 January 1889	1 May 1889
	Jorge Riesco Errázuriz	1 May 1889	23 October 1889
	Ramón Barros Luco	23 October 1889	7 November 1889
	José Miguel Valdés Carrera	7 November 1889	7 August 1890
	Macario Vial Guzmán	7 August 1890	15 October 1890
	Eulogio Allendes Álvarez de Toledo	15 October 1890	6 December 1890
	Guillermo Mackenna Serrano	6 December 1890	29 March 1891
	Nicanor Ugalde Godoy	29 March 1891	29 August 1891
	Agustín Edwards Ross	7 September 1891	14 March 1892	Appointed by	Revolutionary Junta of Iquique
					Reappointed by	Jorge Montt Álvarez
	Jorge Riesco Errázuriz	14 March 1892	11 June 1892
	Vicente Dávila Larraín	11 June 1892	1894
	Manuel Antonio Prieto	1894	1894
	Elías Fernández Albano	1894	1895
	Juan Miguel Dávila	1895	1895
	Elías Fernández Albano	1895	18 September 1896
	Francisco Baeza	18 September 1896	1896		Federico Errázuriz Echaurren
	Francisco de Borja Valdés Cuevas	1896	1897
	Belisario Prats Bello	1897	1897
	Domingo Toro Herrera	1897	1897
	Emilio Orrego Luco	1897	1897
	Julio Bañados Espinoza	1897	1898
	Emilio Bello Codesido	1898	1898
	Arturo Alessandri Palma	1898	1899
	Daniel Rioseco	1899	2 September 1899
	Gregorio Pinochet Espinoza	2 September 1899	died 28 October 1899	Died in office
	Florencio Valdés Cuevas	30 October 1899	1900
	Abraham Gacitúa Brieva	1900	1900
	Rafael Orrego González	1900	1900
	Manuel Covarrubias	1900	1901
	José Ramón Nieto	1901	1901
	Joaquín Fernández Blanco	1901	18 September 1901	Appointed by
				Reappointed by	Aníbal Zañartu
	Ismael Tocornal Tocornal	18 September 1901	1901		Germán Riesco Errázuriz
	Rafael Orrego González	1901	1902
	José Joaquín Villarino Cabezón	5 May 1902	1902
	Agustín Gana Urzúa	1902	1903
	Francisco Rivas Vicuña	1903	1903
	Maximiliano Espinoza Pica	1903	1903
	Manuel Espinoza Jara	1903	12 May 1904
	Carlos Gregorio Abalos Varela	12 May 1904	1 June 1904
	Francisco de Borja Valdés Cuevas	1 June 1904	1904
	Anfión Muñoz Muñoz	1904	1904
	Eduardo Charme Fernández	1904	1905
	Enrique Villegas Encalada	1905	1905
	José Ramón Gutiérrez	1905	1906
	Ramón Antonio Vergara Donoso	1906	1906
	Abraham Ovalle Ovalle	1906	18 September 1906
	Eduardo Charme Fernández	18 September 1906	29 October 1906		Pedro Montt Montt
	Carlos Gregorio Abalos Varela	29 October 1906	7 November 1906
	Anselmo Hevia Riquelme	7 November 1906	1907
	Gonzalo Urrejola Unzueta	1907	1907
	Joaquín Figueroa Larraín	1907	29 August 1908
	Guillermo Echavarría	29 August 1908	22 January 1909
	Manuel Espinoza Jara	22 January 1909	15 June 1909
	Pedro García de la Huerta	15 June 1909	15 September 1909
	Eduardo Délano	15 September 1909	25 June 1910

Ministers of Industry, Public Works and Railroads

Picture	Name	Entered Office	Exited Office	Notes	Appointed by
	Fidel Muñoz Rodríguez	25 June 1910	10 November 1910	Appointed by	Pedro Montt
				Reappointed by	Elías Fernández Albano
				Reappointed by	Emiliano Figueroa
	Beltrán Mathieu Andrews	10 November 1910	23 December 1910
	Ismael Valdés Vergara	23 December 1910	1911		Ramón Barros Luco
	Javier Gandarillas Matta	1911	1911
	Enrique Zañartu Prieto	1911	1912
	Abraham Ovalle Ovalle	1912	1912
	Belfor Fernández	1912	1912
	Oscar Viel Cavero	1912	1913
	Enrique Zañartu Prieto	1913	1914
	Absalón Valencia	1914	1914
	Julio Garcés	1914	1914
	Cornelio Saavedra Montt	1914	1915
	Fernando Freire	1915	1915
	Pedro Felipe Iñiguez	1915	23 December 1915
	Roberto Guzmán Montt	23 December 1915	1916		Juan Luis Sanfuentes
	Angel Guarello Costa	1916	1916
	Justiniano Sotomayor Guzmán	1916	1916
	Ramón León Luco	1916	1917
	Alberto González Errázuriz	1917	1917
	Malaquías Concha Ortiz	1917	1918
	Francisco Landa Zárate	1918	1918
	Ramón Briones	1918	1918
	Francisco Landa Zárate	1918	1918
	Vicente Adrián Villalobos	1918	1919
	Manuel O'Ryan Carrasco	1919	1919
	Malaquías Concha Ortiz	1919	1919
	Oscar Dávila Izquierdo	1919	1920
	Malaquías Concha Ortiz	1920	1920
	Armando Jaramillo Valderrama	1920	23 December 1920
	Zenón Torrealba Ilabaca	23 December 1920	1921		Arturo Alessandri
	Artemio Gutiérrez	1921	1921
	Armando Jaramillo Valderrama	1921	1922
	Pedro Fajardo	1922	1922
	Miguel Letelier Espínola	1922	1922
	Absalón Valencia	1922	1923
	Róbinson Paredes Pacheco	1923	1923
	Vicente Adrián Villalobos	1923	1923
	Juan Vargas Márquez	1923	1923
	Francisco Mardones Otaíza	1923	1924
	Vicente Adrián Villalobos	1924	1924
	Róbinson Paredes Pacheco	1924	1924
	Guillermo Bañados	1924	1924
	Angel Guarello Costa	1924	1924

Ministers of Public Works and Roads

Picture	Name	Entered Office	Exited Office	Notes	Appointed by
	Oscar Dávila Izquierdo	17 October 1924	19 December 1924		September Junta
	Luis Molina Gómez	19 December 1924	23 January 1925
	Francisco Mardones Otaíza	29 January 1925	27 August 1925	Appointed by	January Junta
				Reappointed by	Arturo Alessandri
	Gustavo Lira Manso	27 August 1925	2 October 1925

Ministers of Public Works, Commerce and Communication Roads

Picture	Name	Entered Office	Exited Office	Notes	Appointed by
	Alejandro García Castelblanco	2 October 1925	23 December 1925		Arturo Alessandri
	Angel Guarello Costa	23 December 1925	20 November 1926		Emiliano Figueroa
	Julio Velasco	20 November 1926	23 May 1927
	Emiliano Ortiz Vega	23 May 1927	6 September 1927		Carlos Ibáñez del Campo
	Enrique Balmaceda Toro	6 September 1927	29 September 1927	Interim

Ministers of Foment