The Sharing Economy in Developing Countries: The Case of Agricultural Mechanization Hire Service Enterprises

The aim of the research was to attempt to better understand the sharing economy practice in developing
countries using as a case, agricultural mechanization hire service enterprises (AMHSEs). The research
was based on literature and sources of secondary data and information. The research identified 35
characteristics of the sharing economy and used these as criteria. The criteria were set against evidence
that emerged from the research based on nine countries (China, Ethiopia, Ghana, India, Iraq, Kenya,
Myanmar, Nepal and Nigeria) and cases at regional level for Africa and Asia. The findings were then
classified into five categories ranging from very low to very high relevance to the sharing economy.
Interestingly, what emerged was that AMHSEs, even though having a general mixed relevance to the
sharing economy, provided for a major tendency of low relevance to the sharing economy practice.
Thus, what emerged mainly from the research was that AMHSEs have a low relevance to the sharing
economy practice in developing countries. Thus, such a finding provides that within the context of the
cases provided, the sharing economy practice in developing countries is somewhat minimal.