The sugarcane processing agroindustry is found to be the major propelling of the Brazilian agribusiness, stimulating the growth and development of regions on which factories were established and, the sector is stimulated. In this study, we aimed to analyze the impact of sugarcane sector in the employment generation in Dourados, State of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, seeking to contribute to the local economic development. Data obtained from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics, the Annual Relation of Social Information, the Association of Bioenergy Producers of Mato Grosso do Sul, as well as those from the Secretary of the State of Agrarian Development, Industry and Trade were used. The importance and distribution of employment generated by the sugarcane sector was identified from indicators showed by means of the indices of Relative Participation of Employment and Location Quotient. According to results, the sugarcane sector corresponds to 15.33% of all employments of the economically active population of Dourados and, is characterized as an advanced vector for the local growth, although this micro-region is less economically dependent on the sugarcane sector for its economic development.