South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Friday opened the first convention of a National Dialogue designed to forge a new social pact for the country, telling more than 1,000 delegates at the University of South Africa in Pretoria that “many things are broken” and that resolutions from the meeting “must be implemented.” The two-day gathering, held in Unisa’s Winnie Mandela Building and ZK Matthews Hall, marks the start of a months-long series of public consultations intended to surface solutions to unemployment, inequality and high crime rates. Organisers say discussions over the next six to nine months will take place in schools, community centres, places of worship and online platforms, ultimately producing a roadmap for economic renewal and social cohesion. Delegates at the opening session ranged from trade-union representatives and business leaders to actors and humanitarian figures who have been appointed ambassadors for the process. The initiative has faced immediate headwinds. Proceedings on the first day were marred by technical glitches and complaints that Ramaphosa spent only a short time at the venue. The Democratic Alliance, the second-largest party in the governing coalition, boycotted the convention, calling it “meaningless” and an “obscene waste” of money amid reports that staging the dialogue could cost taxpayers several hundred million rand. Despite the criticism, Ramaphosa urged participants to “ask uncomfortable questions” about entrenched inequality—highlighting an unemployment rate above 33 percent—and to craft a “shared national vision” that could be translated into policy. The convention ended Saturday evening with organisers pledging to publish an action plan and to reconvene in coming months to track progress on agreed priorities.