The Spanish government and the World Health Organization have questioned the decision to cancel the Mobile World Congress

The Spanish government and the World Health Organization (WHO) have questioned the decision to cancel the Mobile World Congress (MWC), the leading mobile phone innovation trade show, that was due to take place in Barcelona later this month.

Health Minister Salvador Illa said there was no public health reason to prevent holding this type of event.

The show’s organizer, the industry association GSMA, officially cancelled the MWC on Thursday after major participating companies backed out over Covid-19 coronavirus strain concerns, including Nokia, Sony, Amazon, Ericsson and Intel.