The Nineteenth Session of the IOC Committee on International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange (IODE-XIX) was held at the International Centre for Theoretical Physics (ICTP) in Trieste, Italy between 12 and 16 March 2007. The event was co-hosted between the ICTP and OGS (L'Istituto Nazionale di Oceanografia e di Geofisica Sperimentale). The IOC Committee on International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange held its Nineteenth Session (IODE-XIX at the Abdus Salam International Centre for Theoretical Physics in Trieste, Italy between 12 and 16 March 2007. The Session was attended by 67 delegates from 43 Member States, 11 representatives of organizations, programmes and projects, and 3 World Data Centres. The IODE Committee, during its 5 day Session, reviewed the work of the past inter-sessional period. The Session (i) completed the implementation process of the IODE review recommendations, submitted at IODE-XVIII; (ii) recommended a new strategy and structure of IODE Groups of Experts; (iii) revised the terms of reference of the IODE GE-BICH; (iv) recommended the development of the IODE Ocean Data Portal project; (v) established ODINs for European countries in economic transition (ODINECET), WESTPAC region (ODINWESTPAC) and Black Sea region (ODINBLACKSEA); (vi) recommended the establishment of the OceanDocs e-repository project; and (vii) recommended the joint HAB/IODE development of a Harmful Algal Event Information System. The Committee further decided to continue the inter-sessional working group on quality control of ocean profile data and instructed it to submit its work to the March/April 2008 IODE Officers Meeting. The Committee recommended the organization of a joint GSSC/IODE Officers Meeting in March/April 2008 and this proposal was agreed upon by the GSSC. The Committee reviewed the draft IOC Strategic Plan for Oceanographic Data and Information Management and tasked Dr Rickards, Mr Reed and Mr Keeley to finalize the Document, and for Dr Rickards to submit it to the IOC Assembly during its 24th Session (18-28 June 2007). The Committee elected Dr Malika Bel-Hassen Abid (Tunisia) and Mr Gregory Reed (Australia) as IODE Co-Chairs.