Ghana in Search of Regional Integration Agenda 59 through the instrumentality of the ECOMOG to tackle the debilitating wars within the Mano River Union(Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea) as well as Cote d'Ivoire. That singular action brought to the fore the recognition of the competence and capabilities of the Ghanaian state. It also brought into sharp focus the visionary leadership that another Ghanaian leader, President Kwame Nkrumah provided during the decolonisation of the entire African continent, through material and intellectual investment in the pan-African project. A second aspect of this leadership credential was displayed by Ghana almost a decade ago through the“fast-track” approach to integration which was spearheaded by two former heads of state, Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria and Jerry Rawlings of Ghana. 83 The essence of this process primarily is the intensification of economic and political integration through the leadership of the two hegemonic players in the sub-region(in terms of population, natural resources, market-size, technocratic skills and know-how, autonomy and ideological prudence) to achieve and cement certain vital infrastructural inroads. It was meant to accelerate and consolidate the productive capacity of the Community in the areas of monetary convergence, transportation, telecommunications, customs harmonisation, deepening of factors of production in labour mobility, residence, establishment, investment and capitalisation and ultimately industrialisation. Even then, one major limitation in this joint hegemonic role is the reputation of the other actor, the notoriety of Nigeria as unstable, corrupt, untrustworthy and undemocratic. Therein lies the strength of Ghana to capitalise on these apparent weaknesses of the leading hegemony and attract the sub region under her leadership, whiles moving the international community to appreciate the“soft power” available to the country. 84 The country can then consolidate its role and position as a hub of industrial activity, commerce, diplomacy and international relations. The country can surely succeed in these processes if it recognises the wisdom in disbursing both material and intellectual resources towards institutional enhancement of the integration process. This also inevitably entails sacrifices on Ghana's sovereign existence as prices must be paid in terms of encroachment on national security, local ownership of the productive sector and services, laws pertaining to residence, citizenship, among others. These are, however, to a large extent, taken care of by existing ECOWAS protocols and conventions. 83 An independent research commissioned under the chairmanship of Prof. S. K. B. Asante, a United Nations consultant and Special advisor to the UNECA recommended that the UEMOA was less a pull factor for ECOWAS integration and more a hindrance. The Fast-Track Approach was launched subsequently to intensify the integration process by forging a second monetary zone among the mostly Anglophone West Africa members of the ECOWAS instead of joining the Francophone-led UEMOA currency zone, the CFA. It took cognizance also of the market size and the population of the same zone hence the need to lead the integration process. 84 Soft power in this regard refers to the values and leadership credentials that Ghana has and which are attractive to the other ECOWAS members and the international community to invest in the country's development and growth process. Refer to the leading work on soft power by Joseph Nye Jr., Soft Power: The Means to Succeed in World Politics.(New York: Public Affairs, 2004).