Photo/Illutration Masakazu Tokura, chairman of the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition, is interviewed by The Asahi Shimbun. (Yasumasa Kikuchi)

Determining the legacy of Osaka Kansai Expo 2025 will take at least six months, according to the organizers.

The event will close on Oct. 13.

One option is to create a video archive, said Masakazu Tokura, who chairs the Japan Association for the 2025 World Exposition.

“I think there is much merit in passing on to future generations the significance, good points and moving moments of the expo,” Tokura told The Asahi Shimbun on Oct. 10. “And in this regard, I include those who were unable to attend.”

The association anticipates a profit on its operating expenses of between 23 billion yen ($152 million) and 28 billion yen.

Tokura said it was not a simple question of determining if the expo was a success simply because it attracted an estimated 24 million visitors.

To be judged a success, the expo had to meet three minimum criteria: that it went off without a hitch, visitors had a good time and the festival did not run at a loss.

Tokura said he was emboldened by positive comments from visitors during the first half of the expo. He added that social media posts helped spread the unexpected positive aspects felt by visitors.

He apologized to those who were unable to enter the vast expo grounds in the closing days due to congestion and transportation problems.

Tokura said the government would set up a committee to assess the results of the expo with input from experts and business leaders.

He said one element of that legacy would center on the ties around the world that the expo helped establish.

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