Coastal countries in East Asia have agreed to join hands to explore ways for sustainable maritime development, the South Korean government said Friday.

The commitment was stated in the Danang Declaration adopted by 11 countries in the region, including the two Koreas, China, Japan, Singapore and the Philippines, at the 5th Ministerial Forum of the East Asian Seas Congress under way in the Vietnamese city of Danang for a six-day run that started Monday, according to the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.

Under the vision of "healthy ocean, people and economy," the declaration calls for the member nations' cooperation over the next five years to achieve goals of how to use the maritime resources while preserving the eco system, how to deal with climate change and how to implement relevant policy measures, it noted.

As part of the efforts, the Seoul ministry put forth a plan to introduce the "Ocean Health Index" to systematically manage the maritime environments. Hosted by the Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia, the meeting has been held every three years since 2003 to seek cooperation and share experiences among countries along the East Asian seas. (Yonhap)