Aquaculture is one of the fastest growing industries globally; its production volume currently represents over 40% of all fisheries and within a few years will surpass that of traditional fisheries. New species and methodologies contribute to the fact that new emerging diseases are increasingly being discovered within this field, and aquatic animal welfare issues are only just beginning to be considered. This OIE Global Conference on Aquatic Animal Health was an opportunity for the OIE and its Member Countries to help build a framework for improved involvement and cooperation between the authorities (Veterinary and Fish Health, Fisheries and Environment), the scientific community and the private sector on aquatic animal health and welfare; help clarify the roles and responsibilities of all stakeholders in the process of early disease detection, rapid response and reporting; help increase aquatic animal health emergency response capabilities; exchange information on emerging diseases and animal welfare issues; help develop a science-based approach to the management of aquatic animal health and welfare; and present the valuable experience gained in the past few years. Following the presentations and discussions, recommendations were developed to better define roles and responsibilities and to assist in the evaluation and improvement of the current standards and guidelines for better control of infectious aquatic animal health, and the preparedness of countries for aquatic animal disease emergencies.