China has so far invested more than 260 billion yuan ($40.2 billion) into 5G network construction, as the nation works to promote the rollout and application of the superfast wireless technology, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said on Tuesday.

Liu Liehong, vice-minister of industry and information technology, said at the opening ceremony of the 2021 Mobile World Congress Shanghai, a major exhibition for the mobile communications industry, more efforts will be made to strengthen policy guidance on the research and development, construction and application of 5G in China.

The ongoing MWC is the first in-person MWC event since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. It also has a virtual platform to accompany the physical event, scheduled to end on Thursday.