Ghana in Search of Regional Integration Agenda 143 broken away from the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union(ICU), then an affiliate of the Ghana TUC. 149 Notwithstanding the varied forms of labour organisations, the Ghana TUC – the single largest trade union centre(is this in Ghana)- has remained the mouthpiece or lead representative of organised labour within the National Tripartite Committee and the ILO. The Ghana TUC has also played a lead role in intervening on policies. Some of these interventions have been on labour and employment related issues, while others touch on broader social, economic and political issues of interest to workers and their organisations. Trade union effectiveness depends on the activism of members first and foremost. In the last decade, in particular, trade unionism has also thrived more on its collaboration with other civil society groups and associations within the country. The importance of alliances is even more critical with globalisation, when there is reduced density of workers in the formal sector- the traditional terrain of trade union organisation. In Ghana, for example, the trade union movement represents less than ten percent of the active labour force. Organised labour is, however, a huge source of pressure and influence as demonstrated by the responsiveness of the formal sector workforce to mobilisation when the need arises. 150 A mapping of organised labour in Ghana captures the Ghana TUC, the Ghana National Association of Teachers, Ghana Registered Nurses Association, Civil Servants Association, Judicial Services Staff of Ghana, Ghana Federation of Labour and the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union. 151 Historically, organised labour has always had a strong tendency to collaborate beyond national borders and, indeed, this is an expression of the fundamental principle of solidarity. It is in this vein that the Ghana TUC, the single largest federation of labour unions in Ghana, has been in the forefront of developing various forms and levels of relations with organised labour at the sub-regional, regional and global levels. Concurrently, organised labour's concerns for democratisation and integration on the African continent and the challenges of globalisation have also given additional basis for deepening collaboration with other civil society organisations across borders, within the African region and beyond. At the continental and regional levels, the Ghana TUC, in particular, was active in the establishment of the Organisation of African Trade Union Unity(OATUU) and the Organisation of Trade Union of West Africa(OTUWA). At the same time, the Ghana 149 Currently, the Ghana TUC has seventeen affiliate National Unions, including the Public Utility Workers Union (PUWU), Teachers and Educational Workers' Union(TEWU), Communication Workers Union(CWU), Health Services Workers Union(HSWU), Union of Industry, Commerce and Finance Workers(UNICOF). 150 Agbesinyale, P.: Democratic Workers' Participation for Economic and Social Development – the case of Ghana, (Accra; Hallow Ads Ltd. 2000). 151 Ofei-Nkansah, K.: A Mapping of Organised Labour in Ghana,(Unpublished Paper prepared for the National Working Group on Trade and Development, Accra, November, 2007).