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Africa Regional Hearing for the Millennium Assembly "United
Nations in the 21st Century" Background The General Assembly decided to designate its fifty-fifth session which begins in the year 2000 "The Millennium Assembly" and that an integral part of it should be a Millennium Summit. The Assembly and related Summit will provide guidance to the United Nations for meeting the challenges of the new century. A series of informal regional hearings by the five Regional Commissions to consult with a cross-section of society are the first steps towards the preparation of "The Millennium Assembly" planned for the year 2000. The Hearing will provide a forum for the identification of issues of particular concern to the Africa region that should form part of the overall vision of the United Nations in the twenty-first century.
Context | Objective | Theme | Format of the Hearning | Participants | Date and Venue | Contacts The arrival of the new millennium offers opportunities to think innovatively on how to address the profound economic, social and political development challenges facing the world. The United Nations as the global organization has the overriding obligation to consider how to respond to the needs and aspirations of the great majority of society, still on the margins of development. The United Nations must rise to the challenge as a means of restoring faith in the organization’s ability to meet the needs of the 21st century. The many concerns that need our careful reflection and actions include, among others: u The redefinition of the new challenges and expectations of the UN. u What kind of United Nations do member States and other stakeholders desire?
Several areas are also demanding the UN’s action, among which the five are significant, namely: peace and security, economic and social affairs, development cooperation, humanitarian action and, of course, human rights. The redefinition process should not lose sight of these and other pressing concerns, which require ongoing attention and commitment. In order to address these and other emerging developmental issues, the UN has initiated a process at the global and regional levels to articulate the vision and challenges of the 21st century and agree on the role of the United Nations. Views from the debates will help shape the Secretary-General’s report outlining a vision of the United Nations as the world enters the new millennium. These proposals will be presented and decided upon at the Millennium Assembly, bringing together Heads of States and government from all over the world. It is expected that regional inputs will form part of the consultative process to formulate concrete recommendations for the Millennium Assembly. In this respect, the Regional Hearings are planned to carry the process of reflection forward by assisting in the identification of the issues of particular concern to the Africa region. The Africa Regional Hearing aims at making important contributions to the UN-wide renewal process of redefining its role in the 21st century. In this respect, the Hearings are expected to generate innovative ideas regarding specific goals the United Nations should strive to achieve in the coming decades, particularly in the five core areas of its work. The main objective of the Hearing is to initiate consultations at the regional level with a view to informing the thematic proposals and issues to define the orientation and role of the United Nations in the new millennium. The Africa Regional Hearing will be organized under the overarching theme "United Nations in the 21st Century". Through this consultative process, participants will examine the role of the United Nations in Africa in the 21st century. Participants will, particularly address issues of significant importance to the region, including the five core areas already identified as priority: peace and security, economic and social affairs, development cooperation, humanitarian affairs and human rights. This main theme would be examined and discussed under the following sub-themes: i. Addressing global problems: The role of the United Nations in the 21st century; ii. Addressing the challenges of peace and security in Africa; iii. Cooperation for economic and social development in Africa; iv. Approaching humanitarian and human rights issues within a global context. The Hearing will be held in plenary sessions to introduce the general debate and discussions on the four sub-themes cited above as well as to wrap-up and conclude the event. The plenary sessions will be open-ended led by a team of panelists drawn from a cross-section of society to define the specific concerns and issues of the Africa region. However, considering the significance of the regional hearing to the general debate on the United Nations in the 21st century and the need to target the consultation at the highest level, the Africa Regional Hearing will be presided over by a distinguished personality (to be announced), who will also deliver the Keynote Address at the opening session. The Hearing is envisaged to be an interactive process with the distinguished representatives of governments as the audience, while the personalities drawn from politics, business, academia and CSOs constitute the panelists to articulate the vision of the UN as it relates to Africa in the new millennium. The session is planned to seek the views of a cross-section of society. As such, participants at the Hearing will include State Members, academia, private sector, media personalities, civil society groups, including non-governmental organizations. The Regional Hearing for the Millennium Assembly will be held on 24 and 25 June 1999 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
3. Mr. Ali Todaro |
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