In an interview with John Maytham on CapeTalk, CDE executive director Ann Bernstein discusses the importance of Johannesburg’s upcoming municipal elections and the urgent need for a stable, reform-minded coalition to restore effective governance. Bernstein warns that years of political instability, corruption and deteriorating services have undermined investment and economic growth in South Africa’s most important economic centre. “If we cannot get our act together to fix Johannesburg, you really have to ask if we can fix the country,” she says. Bernstein argues that any new governing coalition must commit to tackling corruption, rebuilding municipal institutions and restoring reliable electricity and water services to put Johannesburg on a path to recovery.