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The objective of this study is to investigate whether joint ventures (JV) in emerging countries contribute toward the harvesting of knowledge by local parent firms. Given how the reasons underpinning knowledge harvesting by parent firms from JVs have been neglected in the literature, we attempt to identify the key factors influencing this phenomenon. A case study methodology involving semi-structured interviews was used to analyze four JVs operating in different manufacturing sectors in Tunisia. We used the lexical intensity approach to process the data; a method rarely used in this field. The results indicate that knowledge transfer to a local parent company from a JV, in the context of an emerging country, can be significantly improved if five key factors are implemented: JV performance, strategic compatibility, mutual trust, quality of partner contributions, and bargaining power between partners.