This has been done to try and curb the spread of fake news.

Amidst the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, fake news is spreading like wildfire. In a bid to counter the spread of misinformation, WhatsApp has limited certain features when it comes to forwarding messages on the app. Usually, users would have been able to forward messages to more than one recipient at a time. With WhatsApp’s latest update, a message can only be forwarded to another contact one at a time. This restriction will be in place for the foreseeable future, while the world battles COVID-19.