The seventh meeting of the Working Group on Aquaculture (WGA) of the Regional Commission for Fisheries (RECOFI) was held in Doha, the State of Qatar, from 26 to 28 April 2016 and was attended by the representatives from six Member countries. The WGA reviewed the outcome and recommendations of the eighth session of the Commission and took note that the recommendation on Minimum Reporting on Aquaculture Data and Information was adopted as a binding obligation. It was further noted that June 1st was set as the annual deadline for submission of the mandatory data, with the reference year for the data submitted being the preceding year; and that the Regional Aquaculture Information System (RAIS) would be the mechanism through which the data and information would be submitted. The meeting agreed on a series of preliminary actions deemed necessary for the timely implementation of the recommendation, which included the preparation, testing and adoption of a tailored questionnaire. The outcome and recommendations of the regional WGA training course on risk analysis on live aquatic animal introductions and of the round-table meeting on the RECOFI regional aquatic biosecurity programme were reviewed. The WGA agreed on the necessity to establish an ad hoc biosecurity task force which would provide technical followup on all the aquatic animal health issues and WGA recommendations, decide on priority items that should be addressed first, and activate the proposed biosecurity strategy. A first output of the task force would be the drafting of a recommended regional risk analysis protocol for consideration and adoption by the Commission. The WGA appreciated the efforts of the Secretariat in drafting a technical paper on marine spatial planning for the RECOFI area, and agreed that the paper responded to the needs of the countries in providing a framework for marine spatial planning. In view of the growing interest in cage aquaculture, the WGA recommended that a regional set of cage site-selection criteria be prepared for adoption as RECOFI guidelines. The WGA took note of the offer by the Islamic Republic of Iran to fund and host a technical workshop on marine spatial planning (MSP), with a focus on marine cage aquaculture, and open for attendance to all RECOFI Members. With reference to the RAIS, the meeting noted that stronger efforts are urgently needed to ensure that the information system effectively provides the intended services to the sector. Further discussions focused on the updating of the various RAIS directories and the expansion of the system as an allencompassing RECOFI regional capture fisheries and aquaculture data and information system as recommended by the Commission. The WGA Chairperson invited all WGA Focal Points to actively participate in the work of the working group so as to ensure that its mandated task is fulfilled and contributes to strengthening the development of the aquaculture sector in the region. All RECOFI countries were urged to communicate in a timely manner the names and contact details of their WGA Focal Points. The WGA Chairperson was re-nominated for an additional intersessional period.