You will be well aware of the ongoing COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak. We have been closely following developments, as well as the advice of the World Health Organisation, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, and the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment. All the indications are that the situation will become increasingly serious in the weeks ahead and that governments will need to take stringent measures to slow the spread of the virus. In addition to steps being taken by the authorities, we also note that an increasing number of companies are instituting travel bans and other restrictions.

Our first concern is the health, safety and well-being of delegates and speakers, our partners, our colleagues and suppliers. Even if we were to take robust steps to attempt to reduce the risk at the conference, we know that this risk could not be eliminated completely – especially for those travelling long distances to arrive in Amsterdam.

Our second concern is our capacity to deliver a high-quality event, which delegates and sponsors rightly expect for the investment they have made. Some delegates, speakers and sponsors have already indicated that they are no longer comfortable taking part in the event, given these circumstances. It has become clear that the 2020 REC Market Meeting would have had fewer sessions, fewer networking opportunities, and therefore fewer benefits for delegates, speakers, and sponsors alike. As much as we regret the decision to cancel, we believe this is preferable to running an event that does not meet our, or your, expectations.

So, we believe that the responsible thing to do is to cancel this event. We will keep you fully informed of all developments, including dates and other details for the next REC Market Meeting. We also hope to convert some of the sessions that were planned for the conference into a series of webinars that we plan to hold throughout the rest of the year.

Thank you in advance for your understanding,

Secretariat, RECS International