The 15^th Session of CLIVAR/IOC-GOOS Indian Ocean Region Panel took place in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, on 14-15 March 2019, in conjunction with other Indian Ocean Science meetings, including the 3rd Meeting of the second International Indian Ocean Expedition (IIOE-2) Steering Committee, the 9^th IndOOS Resource Forum, the 15^th Indian Ocean Global Observing System (IO-GOOS) and the 9^th meeting of Sustained Indian Ocean Biogeochemistry and Ecosystem Research (SIBER).