Leaders from some 50 Asian Pacific cities agreed Monday to boost cooperation for sustainable development, disaster response and poverty reduction around the world.

They adopted the Seoul Declaration during the 7th CITYNET congress which started Sunday for a four-day run.

CITYNET is the regional network of local authorities for the management of human settlements.

Seoul was elected the same day as the chair city for a four-year term, succeeding Yokohama. Its secretariat moved to Seoul last March after 20 years in the Japanese city.

Seoul will be appointed a representative of Asia for the Global Network on Safer Cities, an urban safety program of UNHABITAT, after the mayors’ forum on Tuesday.

More than 300 participants including 50 local governments and 20 organizations are joining the quadrennial event.

Themed “Our Vision and Way Forward,” the congress will discuss common problems that modern cities face, such as climate change, disasters, the urban poor and water shortage.

Established in 1987, the network pursues sustainable development upon regional cooperation, especially in environment, poverty, infrastructure and governance. It comprises 85 regular members of local governments and 46 associate members of municipalities and international organizations.

By Lee Hyun-jeong  (rene@heraldcorp.com)