Switzerland

§1. Switzerland Introduction

Background:
  The Swiss Confederation was founded in 1291 as a defensive alliance among
  three cantons. In succeeding years, other localities joined the original
  three. The Swiss Confederation secured its independence from the Holy Roman
  Empire in 1499. Switzerland's sovereignty and neutrality have long been
  honored by the major European powers, and the country was not involved in
  either of the two World Wars. The political and economic integration of
  Europe over the past half century, as well as Switzerland's role in many UN
  and international organizations, has strengthened Switzerland's ties with
  its neighbors. However, the country did not officially become a UN member
  until 2002. Switzerland remains active in many UN and international
  organizations, but retains a strong commitment to neutrality.

§2. Switzerland Geography

Location:
  Central Europe, east of France, north of Italy

Geographic coordinates:
  47 00 N, 8 00 E

Map references:
  Europe

Area:
  total: 41,290 km²
  land: 39,770 km²
  water: 1,520 km²

Area - comparative:
  slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey

Land boundaries:
  total: 1,852 km
  border countries: Austria 164 km, France 573 km, Italy 740 km,
    Liechtenstein 41 km, Germany 334 km

Coastline:
  0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims:
  none (landlocked)

Climate:
  temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy winters;
  cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers

Terrain:
  mostly mountains (Alps in south, Jura in northwest) with a central plateau
  of rolling hills, plains, and large lakes

Elevation extremes:
  lowest point: Lake Maggiore 195 m
  highest point: Dufourspitze 4,634 m

Natural resources:
  hydropower potential, timber, salt

Land use:
  arable land: 9.91%
  permanent crops: 0.58%
  other: 89.51% (2005)

Irrigated land:
  250 km² (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
  avalanches, landslides, flash floods

Environment - current issues:
  air pollution from vehicle emissions and open-air burning; acid rain; water
  pollution from increased use of agricultural fertilizers; loss of
  biodiversity

Environment - international agreements:
  party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
    Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution- Sulfur 85, Air
    Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic
    Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
    Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
    Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer
    Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94,
    Wetlands, Whaling
  signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Geography - note:
  landlocked; crossroads of northern and southern Europe; along with
  southeastern France, northern Italy, and southwestern Austria, has the
  highest elevations in the Alps

§3. Switzerland People

Population:
  7,523,934 (July 2006 est.)

Age structure:
  0-14 years: 16.3% (male 637,585/female 591,297)
  15-64 years: 68.1% (male 2,585,062/female 2,539,345)
  65 years and over: 15.6% (male 480,198/female 690,447) (2006 est.)

Median age:
  total: 40.1 years
  male: 39 years
  female: 41.1 years (2006 est.)

Population growth rate:
  0.43% (2006 est.)

Birth rate:
  9.71 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Death rate:
  8.49 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Net migration rate:
  3.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)

Sex ratio:
  at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
  under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female
  15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female
  65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
  total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2006 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
  total: 4.34 deaths/1,000 live births
  male: 4.84 deaths/1,000 live births
  female: 3.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
  total population: 80.51 years
  male: 77.69 years
  female: 83.48 years (2006 est.)

Total fertility rate:
  1.43 children born/woman (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
  0.4% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
  13,000 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
  less than 100 (2003 est.)

Nationality:
  noun: Swiss (singular and plural)
  adjective: Swiss

Ethnic groups:
  German 65%, French 18%, Italian 10%, Romansch 1%, other 6%

Religions:
  Roman Catholic 41.8%, Protestant 35.3%, Orthodox 1.8%, other Christian
  0.4%, Muslim 4.3%, other 1%, unspecified 4.3%, none 11.1% (2000 census)

Languages:
  German (official) 63.7%, French (official) 20.4%, Italian (official) 6.5%,
  Serbo-Croatian 1.5%, Albanian 1.3%, Portuguese 1.2%, Spanish 1.1%, English
  1%, Romansch 0.5%, other 2.8% (2000 census)
  note: German, French, Italian, and Romansch are all national languages, but
    only the first three are official languages

Literacy:
  definition: age 15 and over can read and write
  total population: 99%
  male: 99%
  female: 99% (2003 est.)

§4. Switzerland Government

Country name:
  conventional long form: Swiss Confederation
  conventional short form: Switzerland
  local long form: Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft (German); Confederation
    Suisse (French); Confederazione Svizzera (Italian)
  local short form: Schweiz (German); Suisse (French); Svizzera (Italian)

Government type:
  formally a confederation, but similar in structure to a federal republic

Capital:
  Bern

Administrative divisions:
  26 cantons (cantons, singular - canton in French; cantoni, singular -
  cantone in Italian; kantone, singular - kanton in German); Aargau,
  Appenzell Ausser-Rhoden, Appenzell Inner-Rhoden, Basel-Landschaft,
  Basel-Stadt, Bern, Fribourg, Geneve, Glarus, Graubunden, Jura, Luzern,
  Neuchatel, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Sankt Gallen, Schaffhausen, Schwyz,
  Solothurn, Thurgau, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Vaud, Zug, Zurich

Independence:
  1 August 1291 (founding of the Swiss Confederation)

National holiday:
  Founding of the Swiss Confederation, 1 August (1291)

Constitution:
  revision of Constitution of 1874 approved by the Federal Parliament 18
  December 1998, adopted by referendum 18 April 1999, officially entered into
  force 1 January 2000

Legal system:
  civil law system influenced by customary law; judicial review of
  legislative acts, except with respect to federal decrees of general
  obligatory character; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with
  reservations

Suffrage:
  18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
  chief of state: President Moritz LEUENBERGER (since 8 January 2006); Vice
    President Micheline CALMY-REY (since 8 January 2006); note - the
    president is both the chief of state and head of government
  head of government: President Moritz LEUENBERGER (since 8 January 2006);
    Vice President Micheline CALMY-REY (since 8 January 2006); note - the
    president is both the chief of state and head of government
  cabinet: Federal Council or Bundesrat (in German), Conseil Federal (in
    French), Consiglio Federale (in Italian) elected by the Federal Assembly
    usually from among its own members for a four-year term
  elections: president and vice president elected by the Federal Assembly
    from among the members of the Federal Council for one-year terms that run
    concurrently; election last held 7 December 2005 (next to be held
    December 2006)
  election results: Moritz LUENBERGER elected president; percent of Federal
    Assembly vote - NA; Micheline CALMY-REY elected vice president; percent
    of legislative vote - NA

Legislative branch:
  bicameral Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung (in German), Assemblee
  Federale (in French), Assemblea Federale (in Italian) consists of the
  Council of States or Standerat (in German), Conseil des Etats (in French),
  Consiglio degli Stati (in Italian) (46 seats - consists of two
  representatives from each canton and one from each half canton; members
  serve four-year terms) and the National Council or Nationalrat (in German),
  Conseil National (in French), Consiglio Nazionale (in Italian) (200 seats -
  members are elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional
  representation to serve four-year terms)
  elections: Council of States - last held in most cantons 19 October 2003
    (each canton determines when the next election will be held); National
    Council - last held 19 October 2003 (next to be held October 2007)
  election results: Council of States - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats
    by party - CVP 15, FDP 14, SVP 8, SPS 6, other 3; National Council -
    percent of vote by party - SVP 26.6%, SPS 23.3%, FDP 17.3%, CVP 14.4%,
    Greens 7.4%, other small parties all under 5%; seats by party - SVP 55,
    SPS 54, FDP 36, CVP 28, Green Party 13, other small parties 14

Judicial branch:
  Federal Supreme Court (judges elected for six-year terms by the Federal
  Assembly)

Political parties and leaders:
  Green Party (Grune Partei der Schweiz or Grune, Parti Ecologiste Suisse or
  Les Verts, Partito Ecologista Svizzero or I Verdi, Partida Ecologica Svizra
  or La Verda) [Ruth GENNER]; Christian Democratic People's Party
  (Christichdemokratische Volkspartei der Schweiz or CVP, Parti
  Democrate-Chretien Suisse or PDC, Partito Democratico- Cristiano Popolare
  Svizzero or PDC, Partida Cristiandemocratica dalla Svizra or PCD) [Doris
  LEUTHARD, president]; Radical Free Democratic Party
  (Freisinnig-Demokratische Partei der Schweiz or FDP, Parti
  Radical-Democratique Suisse or PRD, Partitio Liberal-Radicale Svizzero or
  PLR) [Marianne KLEINER-SCHLAEPFER, president]; Social Democratic Party
  (Sozialdemokratische Partei der Schweiz or SPS, Parti Socialist Suisse or
  PSS, Partito Socialista Svizzero or PSS, Partida Socialdemocratica de la
  Svizra or PSS) [Hans-Juerg FEHR, president]; Swiss People's Party
  (Schweizerische Volkspartei or SVP, Union Democratique du Centre or UDC,
  Unione Democratica de Centro or UDC, Uniun Democratica dal Center or UDC)
  [Ueli MAURER, president]; and other minor parties

Political pressure groups and leaders:
  NA

International organization participation:
  ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, ESA,
  FAO, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD,
  IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAIA
  (observer), MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OIF,
  OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR,
  UNMEE, UNMIS, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
  chief of mission: Ambassador Christian BLICKENSTORFER
  chancery: 2900 Cathedral Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
  telephone: [1] (202) 745-7900
  FAX: [1] (202) 387-2564
  consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San
    Francisco
  consulate(s): Boston

Diplomatic representation from the US:
  chief of mission: Ambassador Pamela P. WILLEFORD
  embassy: Jubilaumsstrasse 93, CH-3005 Bern
  mailing address: use embassy street address
  telephone: [41] (031) 357 70 11
  FAX: [41] (031) 357 73 44

Flag description:
  red square with a bold, equilateral white cross in the center that does not
  extend to the edges of the flag

§5. Switzerland Economy

Economy - overview:
  Switzerland is a peaceful, prosperous, and stable modern market economy
  with low unemployment, a highly skilled labor force, and a per capita GDP
  larger than that of the big Western European economies. The Swiss in recent
  years have brought their economic practices largely into conformity with
  the EU's to enhance their international competitiveness. Switzerland
  remains a safehaven for investors, because it has maintained a degree of
  bank secrecy and has kept up the franc's long-term external value.
  Reflecting the anemic economic conditions of Europe, GDP growth dropped in
  2001 to about 0.8%, to 0.2% in 2002, and to -0.3% in 2003, with a small
  rise to 1.8% in 2004-05. Even so, unemployment has remained at less than
  half the EU average.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
  $264.1 billion (2005 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate):
  $367 billion (2005 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
  1.8% (2005 est.)

GDP - per capita (PPP):
  $35,300 (2005 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
  agriculture: 1.5%
  industry: 34%
  services: 64.5% (2003 est.)

Labor force:
  3.8 million (2005 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
  agriculture 4.6%, industry 26.3%, services 69.1% (1998)

Unemployment rate:
  3.8% (2005 est.)

Population below poverty line:
  NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
  lowest 10%: 2.6%
  highest 10%: 25.2% (1992)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
  33.1 (1992)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  1.2% (2005 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
  21.2% of GDP (2005 est.)

Budget:
  revenues: $138.1 billion
  expenditures: $143.6 billion; including capital expenditures of $NA (2005
    est.)

Public debt:
  53.3% of GDP (2005 est.)

Agriculture - products:
  grains, fruits, vegetables; meat, eggs

Industries:
  machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments

Industrial production growth rate:
  3.9% (2005 est.)

Electricity - production:
  63.4 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - consumption:
  55.86 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports:
  33.2 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports:
  30.1 billion kWh (2003)

Oil - production:
  1,950 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - consumption:
  258,900 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:
  10,420 bbl/day (2001)

Oil - imports:
  289,500 bbl/day (2001)

Natural gas - production:
  0 m³ (2003 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
  3.209 billion m³ (2003 est.)

Natural gas - exports:
  0 m³ (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports:
  3.093 billion m³ (2001 est.)

Current account balance:
  $49.66 billion (2005 est.)

Exports:
  $148.6 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Exports - commodities:
  machinery, chemicals, metals, watches, agricultural products

Exports - partners:
  Germany 20.2%, US 10.5%, France 8.7%, Italy 8.3%, UK 5.1%, Spain 4% (2004)

Imports:
  $135 billion f.o.b. (2005 est.)

Imports - commodities:
  machinery, chemicals, vehicles, metals; agricultural products, textiles

Imports - partners:
  Germany 32.8%, Italy 11.3%, France 9.9%, US 5.2%, Netherlands 5%, Austria
  4.3% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
  $74.62 billion (2004 est.)

Debt - external:
  $856 billion (30 June 2005)

Economic aid - donor:
  ODA, $1.1 billion (1995)

Currency (code):
  Swiss franc (CHF)

Exchange rates:
  Swiss francs per US dollar - 1.2452 (2005), 1.2435 (2004), 1.3467 (2003),
  1.5586 (2002), 1.6876 (2001)

Fiscal year:
  calendar year

§6. Switzerland Communications

Telephones - main lines in use:
  5,262,600 (2004)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
  6.275 million (2004)

Telephone system:
  general assessment: excellent domestic and international services
  domestic: extensive cable and microwave radio relay networks
  international: country code - 41; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat
    (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean)

Radio broadcast stations:
  AM 4, FM 113 (plus many low power stations), shortwave 2 (1998)

Television broadcast stations:
  115 (plus 1,919 repeaters) (1995)

Internet country code:
  .ch

Internet hosts:
  1,823,012 (2005)

Internet users:
  4,944,438 (2005)

§7. Switzerland Transportation

Airports:
  65 (2005)

Airports - with paved runways:
  total: 42
  over 3,047 m: 3
  2,438 to 3,047 m: 4
  1,524 to 2,437 m: 11
  914 to 1,523 m: 8
  under 914 m: 16 (2005)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
  total: 23
  under 914 m: 23 (2005)

Heliports:
  2 (2005)

Pipelines:
  gas 1,831 km; oil 94 km; refined products 7 km (2004)

Railways:
  total: 4,527 km
  standard gauge: 3,232 km 1.435-m gauge (3,211 km electrified)
  narrow gauge: 1,285 km 1.000-m gauge (1,273 km electrified); 10 km 0.800-m
    gauge (10 km electrified) (2004)

Roadways:
  total: 71,220 km
  paved: 71,220 km (including 1,726 of expressways) (2003)

Waterways:
  65 km (Rhine River between Basel-Rheinfelden and Schaffhausen-Bodensee)
  (2003)

Merchant marine:
  total: 25 ships (1000 GRT or over) 468,821 GRT/778,115 DWT
  by type: bulk carrier 9, cargo 9, chemical tanker 2, container 4,
    specialized tanker 1
  foreign-owned: 2 (Monaco 2)
  registered in other countries: 306 (Antigua and Barbuda 4, The Bahamas 7,
    Belize 2, Bermuda 1, Cyprus 6, French Southern and Antarctic Lands 1,
    Germany 1, Indonesia 2, Ireland 1, Italy 7, Liberia 7, Malta 21, Marshall
    Islands 11, Mauritius 2, Morocco 1, Panama 206, Portugal 3, Russia 8,
    Saint Kitts and Nevis 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 10, Tonga 1,
    Turkey 1, Vanuatu 2) (2005)

Ports and terminals:
  Basel

§8. Switzerland Military

Military branches:
  Land Forces, Swiss Air Force (Schweizer Luftwaffe)

Military service age and obligation:
  the Swiss Constitution states that "every Swiss male is obliged to do
  military service"; every Swiss male has to serve for at least 260 days in
  the armed forces; 19 years of age for compulsory military service; 17 years
  of age for voluntary military service; conscripts receive 15 weeks of
  compulsory training, followed by 10 intermittent recalls for training over
  the next 22 years; women are accepted on a voluntary basis but are not
  drafted (2005)

Manpower available for military service:
  males age 19-49: 1,707,694 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
  males age 19-49: 1,375,889 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
  males: 46,319 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
  $2.548 billion (FY01)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
  1% (FY01)

§9. Switzerland Transnational Issues

Disputes - international:
  none

Illicit drugs:
  a major international financial center vulnerable to the layering and
  integration stages of money laundering; despite significant legislation and
  reporting requirements, secrecy rules persist and nonresidents are
  permitted to conduct business through offshore entities and various
  intermediaries; transit country for and consumer of South American cocaine
  and Southwest Asian heroin


<Factbook 2006>
