Seoul and seven other cities agreed Thursday to form a global consultative body next year to push for sustainable socio-economic development.

The annual Global Social Economy Forum in Seoul adopted a declaration pledging to cooperate on a range of projects for inclusive urban development, including social enterprises, micro-financing and cooperatives.

Seoul will host the provisional secretariat of the envisioned global network and its inaugural conference next year.

Representatives from cities including Quebec, Yokohama and Bologna and nine international nongovernmental organizations participated in the two-day forum. The other cities are Kyoto, Montreal, Emilia-Romagna (Italy) and Quezon (the Philippines).

About 1,000 citizens and various global communities discussed 20 related issues at the forum, including solar power, urban agriculture and housing regeneration.

Seoul and Bologna signed a memorandum of understanding, agreeing to share experiences in cooperative associations, village corporations and nonprofit organizations.

A Korean think tank, the Seoul Social Economy Network, also inked an MOU with Canadian network Chantier and Karl Polanyi Institute of Political Economy, which is based at Concordia University in Quebec, Canada.

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