SHANGHAI, Oct. 31 (Xinhua) -- The 184-day Shanghai World Expo lowers the curtain on Sunday; however, it opens the door for nations to build better cities and better life for mankind, which is the theme of the Expo.

Participant nations and international organizations at the Expo jointly issued the Shanghai Declaration on Sunday, which pledged to build cities that establish harmony between diverse people, between development and environment and between cultural legacies and future innovations.

The consensus came after they explored, envisioned and simulated the mosaic of urban life through the exhibitions of the pavilions, the instructive showcases of urban best practices and the in-depth intellectual exchanges during the six months.

JOINT DETERMINATION TOWARDS THE BETTER

The declaration is a "summary of the substantive achievements" of the Expo and "an expression of the shared aspirations of people round the world for a 'Better City, Better Life'", the statement said.

It said that people's understanding and pursuit of a better life are both the foundations and the engines of urban development and it is necessary to re-examine the relationship between people, cities and the planet.

Cities should look to innovations as solutions in tackling the challenges of urban development, including population explosion, traffic congestion, environmental pollution, resource shortages, urban poverty and cultural conflicts, the statement said.

This Expo "offers hope for tackling the growing challenges of our age of urbanization", United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said at the forum, hoping China will be an urban pioneer.

Participants proposed in the statement that cities should promote the use of renewable energy sources and build low-carbon eco-cities, and pursue inclusive and balanced growth.

Efforts should be made to promote scientific and technological innovation as a path to development, it said, urging more investment in information and communication technology infrastructure to strengthen services across multiple sectors, and to build an intelligent digital nervous system supporting urban operations.

Cities should pursue cultural innovation based on respect for cultural

traditions and the preservation of cultural diversity to generate

lasting momentum for urban and human development, it said.

They should enhance urban planning to promote a civil, safe and livable urban neighborhoods, and coordinate balanced development with rural regions through the provision of services and infrastructure, it said.

The declaration also proposed that Oct. 31, the closing day of the World Expo 2010, should be nominated as World Better Cities Day, in a bid to recall, renew and advance ideas and practices of the Shanghai Expo for future development.

It called upon the world to promote sustainable urban development, foster cooperation and exchanges among cities and regions, and share experiences and lessons in urbanization.

CHINA'S CITY BOOM

China, the world's fastest growing economy with 1.3 billion population, has set out on and will step up rapid urbanization as the government believes urbanization is an inevitable trend as well as a strong boost to China's economic and social development.

Statistics show that by the end of 2009, China's urbanization rate reached 46.6 percent. It's estimated that another 400 million people from rural China will migrate to cities in the coming 20 years.

Some Chinese cities have started to taste the challenges while enjoying benefits amid fast urbanization. Traffic congestion is one of the most common problems in big cities as more people are flooding there for better life.

In Beijing, a record 140 traffic jams were observed on a Friday evening in September, extending a normally 15-minute commute to nearly two hours.

A McKinsey &Company research showed this month that China will have 10 large cities with population above 10 million each, including Beijing, Shanghai, Chongqing, Tianjin, Hangzhou, Wuhan and Xi'an.

"The theme of the Expo is particularly relevant at a time when the majority of the planet's population is living in cities and while a large migration of the world's rural population is moving into the cities," Jean Pierre Lafon, President of the International Exhibitions Bureau, said.

The Shanghai Expo introduced the first-ever Urban Best Practices Area and Virtual Expo to illustrate the success stories of various countries in urban development and management with many cases and models, such as Japan's Osaka, China's Hangzhou, Czech's Prague and Spain's Madrid among others.

Leaders and experts agreed that the Expo would provide experience and guidance for cities to handle challenges and develop for the better.

These challenges must be tackled head on and technological advances offers solution, Jean Pierre Lafon said.

He warned that nothing can progress without the political will of all, saying "the declaration will only be worth the attention and follow-up that we all give to it".

The Expo, which opened on May 1 in Shanghai, drew the participation of 246 countries and international organizations, by far the largest number since the first World Expo was held in Britain in 1851.

It has attracted more than 73 million visitors, surpassing the targeted 70 million set by organizers and breaking the record of 64 million in 1970 Osaka World Expo in Japan.