President Cyril Ramaphosa’s recent announcement of a National Dialogue signals a defining moment for South Africa. With deepening inequality, democratic fatigue and widespread disillusionment, there is an imperative that this dialogue is not limited to elite consultations without sufficient public participation. If it defaults to top-down solutions and closed-door deliberations, it risks entrenching the exclusionary patterns of the past it aims to undo. Mondli Makhanya spoke to Makhukhu Mampuru, NEDLAC Executive Director and National Dialogue steering committee member.