Knowledge Sharing Practices in African Small and Medium Enterprises: A Systematic Review

We are a team of 2 Master of Science in Knowledge Management & Innovation Students, KCA University, Kenya. Together with our Lecturer we are registering our systematic review protocol. Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) are critical economic drivers across Africa, contributing significantly to employment generation, GDP growth, and poverty reduction. However, their sustainability and competitiveness are often constrained by limited access to knowledge resources, weak knowledge transfer mechanisms, and inadequate organizational learning practices. Knowledge sharing, as a specific knowledge management process, has emerged as a key enabler of innovation, productivity, and competitive advantage in SMEs globally. Despite growing interest in knowledge management within African SMEs, existing research remains fragmented across countries, sectors, and theoretical frameworks. Preliminary literature scoping reveals significant geographic imbalances, with the majority of empirical studies concentrated in Anglophone countries such as Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, and Ghana, while Francophone and Lusophone Africa remain severely under-researched. Furthermore, existing systematic reviews on knowledge management in SMEs adopt a global perspective and do not isolate knowledge sharing as a distinct construct, nor do they synthesize contextual enablers, barriers, and outcomes specific to the African business environment. This systematic review is therefore needed to consolidate empirical evidence on knowledge sharing practices adopted by African SMEs, identify formal and informal mechanisms currently in use, examine factors that facilitate or hinder effectiveness, and assess organizational outcomes associated with knowledge sharing. Such a synthesis will provide evidence-based guidance for SME managers, inform policymakers and development organizations supporting SME growth, and identify critical research gaps to guide future scholarship in this under-studied context.