Map of Switzerland | Geography | People | Government | Economy | Energy | Communication
Military | Transportation | Transnational Issues | Year: Guide1989199019911992199319941995199619971998199920002001200220032004200520062007200820092010201120122013201420152016201720182019202020212022202320242025 | More stats

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Background: Switzerland's independence and neutrality have long been honored by the major European powers and Switzerland did not participate in either World War I or II. The political and economic integration of Europe since World War II may be rendering obsolete Switzerland's concern for neutrality.


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

Geographic coordinates: 47 00 N, 8 00 E

Map reference: Europe

Area
Total: 41,290 km²
Land: 39,770 km²
Water: 1,520 km²
Comparative: slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey

Land boundaries
Total: 1,852 km
Border countries: (5) 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
Extremes highest point: Dufourspitze 4,634 m

Natural resources: hydropower potential, timber, salt

Land use
Arable land: 10%
Permanent crops: 2%
Permanent pastures: 28%
Forests and woodland: 32%
Other: 28% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 250 km² (1993 est.)

Major rivers

Major watersheds area km²

Total water withdrawal

Total renewable water resources

Natural hazards: avalanches, landslides, flash floods

Geography
Note: landlocked; crossroads of northern and southern Europe; along with southeastern France and northern Italy, contains the highest elevations in Europe


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Population: 7,275,467 (July 1999 est.)
Growth rate: 0.2% (1999 est.)
Below poverty line: NA%

Nationality
Noun: Swiss (singular and plural)
Adjective: Swiss

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

Languages: German 63.7%, French 19.2%, Italian 7.6%, Romansch 0.6%, other 8.9%

Religions: Roman Catholic 46.1%, Protestant 40%, other 5%, no religion 8.9% (1990)

Demographic profile

Age structure
0-14 years: 17% (male 639,970; female 611,876)
15-64 years: 68% (male 2,509,988; female 2,417,580)
65 years and over: 15% (male 444,482; female 651,571) (1999 est.)

Dependency ratios

Median age

Population growth rate: 0.2% (1999 est.)

Birth rate: 10.53 births/1000 population (1999 est.)

Death rate: 9.06 deaths/1000 population (1999 est.)

Net migration rate: 0.49 migrant(s)/1000 population (1999 est.)

Population distribution

Urbanization

Major urban areas

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

Air pollutants

Sex ratio
At birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
Under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (1999 est.)

Mothers mean age at first birth

Maternal mortality ratio

Infant mortality rate: 4.87 deaths/1000 live births (1999 est.)

Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 78.99 years
Male: 75.83 years
Female: 82.32 years (1999 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.46 children born/woman (1999 est.)

Contraceptive prevalence rate

Drinking water source

Current health expenditure

Physicians density

Hospital bed density

Sanitation facility access

Hiv/Aids

Major infectious diseases

Obesity adult prevalence rate

Alcohol consumption

Tobacco use

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

Education expenditures

Literacy
Definition: age 15 and over can read and write
Total population: 99% (1980 est.)
Male: NA%
Female: NA%

School life expectancy primary to tertiary education

Youth unemployment


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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: federal republic

Capital: Bern

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

Dependent areas

Independence: 1 August 1291

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

Constitution: 29 May 1874

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

International law organization participation

Citizenship

Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal

Executive branch
Chief of state: President Ruth DREIFUSS (since 1 January 1999); Vice President Adolf OGI (since 1 January 1999); note_the president is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Ruth DREIFUSS (since 1 January 1999); Vice President Adolf OGI (since 1 January 1999); 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 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 NA December 1998 (next to be held NA December 1999)
Election results: Ruth DREIFUSS elected president; percent of Federal Assembly vote_Ruth DREIFUSS 75%; Adolf OGI 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_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 a basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)
Elections: Council of States_last held throughout 1997 (each canton determines when the next election will be held); National Council_last held 20 October 1995 (next to be held probably 24 October 1999)
Election results: Council of States_percent of vote by party_NA; seats by party_FDP 17, CVP 16, SVP 5, SPS 5, LPS 2, LdU 1; National Council_percent of vote by party_NA; seats by party_FDP 45, SPS 54, CVP 34, SVP 29, Greens 9, LPS 7, FPS 7, LdU 3, EVP 2, SD 3, PdAdS 3, Ticino League 1, EDU 1, FRAP 1, CSP 1

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

Political parties and leaders

International organization participation: ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EFTA, ESA, FAO, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MTCR, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN (observer), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNPREDEP, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Alfred DEFAGO
In the us chancery: 2,900 Cathedral Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20,008
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 745-7,900
In the us FAX: [1] (202) 387-2,564
In the us consulates general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador Madeleine May KUNIN
From the us embassy: Jubilaeumstrasse 93, 3,005 Bern
From the us mailing address: use embassy street address
From the us telephone: [41] (31) 357 70 11
From the us FAX: [41] (31) 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

National symbols

National anthem

National heritage


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Economy overview: Switzerland, a fundamentally prosperous and stable modern economy with a per capita GDP 15%-20% above that of the big West European economies, experienced an export-driven upturn in its economy in 1998. The downturn in the global economy, however, will have a cooling effect on the 1998 boom in the Swiss export sector, including financial services, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and special-purpose machines. A major downturn in the Swiss economy should still be avoided, as consumer and capital spending have picked up and will keep the economy moving in 1999. GDP growth in 1999 is expected to come in around 1.4%. The growing political and economic union of Europe suggests that Switzerland's time-honored neutral separation is becoming increasingly obsolete. Thus, when the surrounding trade partners launched the euro on 1 January 1999, their firms began prodding Swiss exporters and importers to keep their accounts in euros.

Real gdp purchasing power parity

Real gdp growth rate: 2% (1998 est.)

Real gdp per capita: purchasing power parity: $26,400 (1998 est.)

Gross national saving

Gdp composition by end use

Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 2.8%
Industry: 31.1%
Services: 66.1% (1995)

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

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

Industrial production growth rate: 6% (1998 est.)

Labor force: 3.8 million (850,000 foreign workers, mostly Italian)
By occupation services: 67%
By occupation manufacturing and construction: 29%
By occupation agriculture and forestry: 4% (1995)

Unemployment rate: 3.6% (1998 est.)

Youth unemployment

Population below poverty line: NA%

Gini index

Household income or consumption by percentage share

Distribution of family income gini index

Budget
Revenues: $32.66 billion
Expenditures: $34.89 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.3 billion (1998 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

Public debt

Revenue

Fiscal year: calendar year

Inflation rate consumer prices

Central bank discount rate

Commercial bank prime lending rate

Stock of narrow money

Stock of broad money

Stock of domestic credit

Market value of publicly traded shares

Current account balance

Exports: $94.4 billion (f.o.b., 1998)
Commodities: machinery 29%, chemicals 28%, metals, watches, agricultural products (1997)
Partners: EU 61% (Germany 23%, France 9%, Italy 8%, UK 6%, Austria 3%), US 10%, Japan 4% (1997)

Imports: $95.5 billion (f.o.b., 1998)
Commodities: machinery 22%, chemicals 16%, vehicles, metals, agricultural products, textiles (1997)
Partners: EU 79% (Germany 32%, France 12%, Italy 10%, Netherlands 5%, UK 5%),, US 7%, Japan 3% (1997)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

Debt external: $NA

Stock of direct foreign investment at home

Stock of direct foreign investment abroad

Exchange rates: Swiss francs, franken, or franchi (SFR) per US$1: 1.3837 (January 1999), 1.4498 (1998), 1.4513 (1997), 1.2360 (1996), 1.1825 (1995), 1.3677 (1994)


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Electricity
Production: 54.815 billion kWh (1996)
Production by source fossil fuel: 3.99%
Production by source hydro: 52.73%
Production by source nuclear: 43.27%
Production by source other: 0.01% (1996)
Consumption: 53.765 billion kWh (1996)
Exports: 24.2 billion kWh (1996)
Imports: 23.15 billion kWh (1996)

Coal

Petroleum

Crude oil

Refined petroleum

Natural gas

Carbon dioxide emissions

Energy consumption per capita


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Telephones: 5.24 million (1996 est.), 307,000 cellular telephone subscribers (1994 est.)

Telephone system: excellent domestic and international services
Domestic: extensive cable and microwave radio relay networks
International: satellite earth stations_2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean)

Broadcast media

Internet

Broadband fixed subscriptions


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Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $3.1 billion (1999)
Percent of gdp: 1.2% (1999)

Military and security forces

Military service age and obligation

Space program

Terrorist groups


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National air transport system

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

Airports: 67 (1998 est.)
With paved runways total: 42
With paved runways over 3047 m: 3
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 5
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 12
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 7
With paved runways under 914 m: 15 (1998 est.)
With unpaved runways total: 25
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 25 (1998 est.)

Heliports

Pipelines: crude oil 314 km; natural gas 1,506 km

Railways
Total: 4,479 km (1,564 km double track)
Standard gauge: 3,304 km 1.435-m gauge (3,288 km electrified)
Narrow gauge: 1,165 km 1.000-m gauge (1,057 km electrified); 10 km 0.750-m or 0.800-m gauge (1996)

Roadways

Waterways: 65 km; Rhine (Basel to Rheinfelden, Schaffhausen to Bodensee; 12 navigable lakes

Merchant marine
Total: 20 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 412,459 GRT/724,995 DWT
Ships by type: bulk 13, cargo 1, chemical tanker 5, oil tanker 1 (1998 est.)

Ports and terminals


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Disputes international: none

Refugees and internally displaced persons

Illicit drugs: because of more stringent government regulations, used significantly less as a money-laundering center; transit country for and consumer of South American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin