In order to elicit innovative views and suggestions on how best to strengthen the United Nations to face the challenges ahead in the areas of peace and security, development, humanitarian affairs and human rights, representatives of civil society have been invited by the United Nations to participate with Member States in regional hearings. In cooperation with the five Regional Commissions of the United Nations, five regional hearings were held in Beirut, Lebanon, for Western Asia, in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for Africa, in Geneva, Switzerland, for Europe, in Santiago, Chile, for Latin America and the Caribbean, and in Tokyo, Japan, for Asia and the Pacific.

The Secretary-General, who had requested the holding of the regional hearings (A/52/850), has drawn on the reports of the regional hearings in the preparation of his report to the General Assembly entitled "We the peoples: the role of the United Nations in the twenty-first century" (A/54/2000).