摘要：The inclusion of local people and their cultural practices impact positively on biodiversity conservation. This is the underlying factors behind the success stories of countries with high numbers of biological diversity resources. It is sad to reckon that most biodiversity policies of developing countries like Ghana do not fully include the voices of the local people as well as their cultural practices. There was, therefore, the need to thoroughly review the national biodiversity strategies and action plans of some countries that have effectively factored the local people and their cultural practices in their biodiversity policies. This was to elucidate how and in what areas the views of the local people and their cultural practices can be effectively incorporated into biodiversity conservation initiatives. The study utilized qualitative research approach with document analysis method. Related literature on the subject from peer-reviewed manuscripts, biodiversity strategic reports and strategies of different countries were rigorously reviewed and analyzed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). The study revealed that local people have time-tested conservation knowledge enfolded in their cultural practices like religious beliefs, taboos, etc. Legal backing was seen as the main driving force behind the utilization of the cultural practices of the local people in the biodiversity strategies reviewed. Moreover, the local people were fully involved in the development of the biodiversity strategies. This was seen in the areas of planning, management, and decision-making, recruitment of staff, as well as the dissemination and implementation of the biodiversity strategy. The study concluded that effective biodiversity policies must reflect the cultural practices and the views of local people since they are powerful instruments of conservation. It tasks biodiversity policy designers to fully incorporate local communities and their cultural practices in the development of biodiversity strategies.
关键词：national biodiversity strategies; conservation; cultural practices; local communities; taboo; totem
