Purpose-This study contributes to research on knowledge management in higher education institutions (HEIs), by studying the enablers and barriers to knowledge management in a country with a developing higher education sector, Mauritius.

Purpose: This study contributes to research on knowledge management (KM) in higher education institutions (HEIs) by studying its processes, knowledge creation, knowledge sharing and knowledge transfer, in Mauritius.Design/methodology/approach: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with senior staff in the main public and private HEIs in Mauritius. Questions focused on KM strategy and processes. Interviews were recorded and transcribed prior to thematic analysis. Findings:Although participants could discuss KM processes, none of the participating institutions had a KM strategy. All institutions are involved in knowledge creation and acquisition, knowledge sharing, and knowledge transfer. In addition to research, knowledge was regarded as being created through teaching and learning activities, consultancies, organisational documentation and acquisition from external sources. Knowledge is shared among peers during departmental and curriculum meetings, through annual research seminars and during conferences and publications in journals. Knowledge transfer with industry through consultancies is restricted to a few public HEIs. In the remaining HEIs, knowledge transfer is limited to their students joining the workforce and to organising tailor-made courses and training programmes for public and private institutions. The study also provides evidence that some processes and activities contribute to more than one of knowledge creation, sharing and transfer.Originality/value -This study contributes to the very limited body of research into KM processes in countries with developing higher education sectors. In addition, this research disaggregates the processes associated with knowledge creation, sharing and transfer, whilst also examining the relationship between them.

PurposeUniversities need to manage their knowledge assets, and, to work creatively to maximize the enablers and minimize the barriers associated with knowledge management processes. This research offers a comparative perspective on knowledge management in universities in two countries whose university sectors are at different stages of their development, South Africa and Mauritius.Design/methodology/approachSemi-structured interviews were conducted with expert informants from 10 high-ranking universities in Mauritius and South Africa, who held senior roles in research and its management within their respective universitiesFindingsBoth enablers and barriers (eandb) were evident in relation to: strategies and policies, organizational structures, rewards and incentives, culture, technology, leadership, human resources, resources and funding, and university-industry linkages, although the significance of these eandbs varied between the three knowledge processes, knowledge creation, knowledge sharing and knowledge transfer. Overall, Mauritius, with a less developed university sector, faced more challenges in respect of knowledge management than did South Africa.Originality/valueThis study's theoretical contribution is a holistic framework for enabling KM in universities on the basis of a mapping between KM eandb's and KM processes. This comparative country level study, embracing a number of universities, offers insights into national policy, and cultural expectations that influence the extent and nature of barriers and enablers to effective KM. The insights offered by this study will be valuable for Mauritius and South Africa, and also for universities in other countries.