Ghana in Search of Regional Integration Agenda 112 After winning the 1992 elections, one of the priorities of the NDC government under Jerry John Rawlings was to reorient itself toward the realisation of the ideals of the ECOWAS. Indeed, a dominant political agenda of the NDC was the advancement of regional integration(making ECOWAS more functional) – a priority that occupied elaborate spaces in some of the post-1992 NDC's manifestos. For instance, as was the case with its 1996 manifesto, the NDC defined its 2004 campaign platform to reflect the country's'original African-centred foreign policy bequeathed to the nation by the founding fathers with a special focus on West African integration'(NDC, Manifesto, 2004:16). During its eight years in power, the NDC had bilateral discussions with Burkina Faso on some developments that had the potential of undermining aspects of the ECOWAS protocol. For instance, the NDC government made the effort to deal with the issue of cattle transhumance and other related criminal matters associated with the Fulani herdsmen doing business in the country(Daily Graphic Monday February 1 1999:1). In spite of such efforts made to resolve the seeming canker, the NDC 2004 manifesto reserved a place for more broad issues of cross border crime, cattle transhumance, drug and child trafficking as well as the movement of illegal arms across West Africa. According to the NDC: We shall, within the ECOWAS framework, address the issues of cross border crime, cattle transhumance, drug trafficking, trafficking in children, and the movement of illegal arms(NDC, Manifesto 2004: 72). By creating the Ministries of Regional Integration and later Regional Cooperation and NEPAD by the NDC and NPP governments respectively, they translated their promises to promote greater integration among the ECOWAS member-states into concrete action. Other minority parties have also shown interest in regional integration. Some of the manifestoes of the CPP and People's National Convention (PNC) give clear signals to the parties' vision for West African integration. It is one of the cardinal principles of the CPP'to actively promote co-operation with all democratically established governments for the mutual benefit of the peoples in the West African sub-region'(CPP, 2004: 16). The CPP views issues of'peace, social justice and economic well-being, the rule of law and the guarantee of fundamental human rights among Ghanaians and their neighbours'(CPP, 2000:18) as critical for sustainable West African integration. The PNC would also'fortify ties with neighbouring ECOWAS states as a prerequisite for reaping economic integration in the sub-region'(PNC, 2000: 13). Because sub-regional integration is central to both the CPP and PNC, their representatives in Parliament(MPs of the CPP and PNC) supported the NDC and NPP governments to advance the course of the ECOWAS, particularly on measures that were to qualify Ghana into the West African Monetary Zone(WAMZ).