Switzerland

Switzerland 

Geography                 Economy                 Defense Forces
 

People                    Transportation          Government



Communications            History      	          Travel

GEOGRAPHY

Location

Central Europe, east of France

Area

Land Boundaries

Total 1,852 km, Austria 164 km, France 573 km, Italy 740 km, Liechtenstein 41 km, Germany 334 km

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Maritime Claims

None; landlocked

International Disputes

None

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

Natural Resources

Land Use

Irrigated Land

250 sq km (1989)

Environment

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

PEOPLE

Population

7,207,060 (July 1996 est.)
7,084,984 (July 1995 est.)

Age Structure

0-14 Years

17% (male 638,728; female 610,546) (July 1996 est.) 17% (male 622,436; female 594,565) (July 1995 est.)

15-64 Years

68% (male 2,495,325; female 2,405,226) (July 1996 est.)
68% (male 2,448,213; female 2,375,792) (July 1995 est.)

65 Years and Over

15% (male 424,394; female 632,841) (July 1996 est.)
15% (female 623,136; male 420,842) (July 1995 est.)

Population Growth Rate

0.59% (1996 est.)
0.57% (1995 est.)

Birth Rate

11.35 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
12.04 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Death Rate

9.64 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
9.16 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)

Net Migration Rate

4.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
2.82 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)

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: 0.67 male(s)/female
all ages: 0.98 male(s)/female (1996 est.)

Infant Mortality Rate

5.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
6.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)

Life Expectancy at Birth

Total Fertility Rate

1.47 children born/woman (1996 est.)
1.6 children born/woman (1995 est.)

Nationality

Ethnic Divisions

Swiss Nationals

German 74%, French 20%, Italian 4%, Romansch 1%, other 1%

Religions

Languages

German 65%, French 18%, Italian 12%, Romansch 1%, other 4%

Note: Figures for Swiss nationals only - German 74%, French 20%, Italian 4%, Romansch 1%, other 1%

Literacy

Age 15 and over that can read and write (1980 est.)

Labor Force

3.48 million (900,000 foreign workers, mostly Italian)

By occupation:

GOVERNMENT

Names

Digraph

SZ

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

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

Suffrage

18 years of age; universal

Executive Branch

Legislative Branch

Bicameral Federal Assembly (German - Bundesversammlung, French - Assemblee Federale, Italian - Assemblea Federale)

Council of States

German - Standerat, French - Conseil des Etats, Italian - Consiglio degli Stati; elections last held throughout 1991 (next to be held NA 1995); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (46 total) FDP 18, CVP 16, SVP 4, SPS 3, LPS 3, LdU 1, Ticino League 1

National Council

German - Nationalrat, French - Conseil National, Italian - Consiglio Nazionale; elections last held 20 October 1991 (next to be held NA October 1995); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (200 total) FDP 44, SPS 42, CVP 37, SVP 25, GPS 14, LPS 10, AP 8, LdU 6, SD 5, EVP 3, PdA 2, Ticino League 2, other 2

Judicial Branch

Federal Supreme Court

Political Parties and Leaders

Free Democratic Party (FDP), Franz STEINEGGER, president; Social Democratic Party (SPS), Peter BODENMANN, president; Christian Democratic People's Party (CVP), Anton COTTIER, president; Swiss People's Party (SVP), Hans UHLMANN, president; Green Party (GPS), Verena DIENER, president; Freedom Party (FPS), Roland BORER, president; Liberal Party (LPS), Christoph EYMANN, president; Alliance of Independents' Party (LdU), Monica WEBER, president; Ticino League, Giuliano BIGNASCA, president; and other minor parties including the Automobile Party (AP), Swiss Democratic Party (SD), Workers' Party (PdA), and the Evangelical People's Party (EVP); note - see elections

Member of

AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EBRD, ECE, EFTA, ESA, FAO, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MTCR, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OSCE, PCA, UN (observer), UNAMIR, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNPREDEP, UNPROFOR, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

National Anthem

Flag

Red square with a bold, equilateral white cross in the center that does not extend to the edges of the flag

ECONOMY

Overview

Switzerland, a fundamentally prosperous and stable modern economy with a per capita GDP roughly 10% above that of the big West European economies, is experiencing short-term difficulties. After recovering slowly in 1994-95 from recession, the Swiss economy remains weak, mainly because of the strong Swiss franc and weak growth in Swiss export market, especially in other European countries. Over the near term, growth may average barely 1%, with more than one-half of this increase resulting from growth in inventories. Weak domestic consumer demand is the principal culprit; stagnation in real disposable income is combining with a reluctance to reduce saving rates in the face of an uncertain employment outlook. Switzerland's leading sectors, including financial services, biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, and special-purpose machines, will therefore be more reliant on export markets at the same time they are being squeezed by the strong franc. Consequently, growth in machinery and equipment investment, for example, is expected to taper off. On the other side, import growth has been fueled by the strong franc; there are growing indications that Swiss manufacturers are substituting imported inputs for domestic ones.

National Product

GDP - purchasing power parity - $158.5 billion (1995 est.), $148.4 billion (1994 est.)

National Product Real Growth Rate

1.2% (1995 est.)
1.8% (1994 est.)

National Product Per Capita

$22,400 (1995 est.)
$22,080 (1994 est.)

Inflation Rate (consumer Prices)

1.8% (1995 est.)
0.9% (1994 est.)

Unemployment Rate

3.3% (1995)
4.7% (1994 est.)

Budget

Exports

$69.6 billion (f.o.b., 1994 est.)

Commodities:

Partners:

Imports

$68.2 billion (c.i.f., 1994 est.)

Commodities:

Partners:

External Debt

NA

Industrial Production

Growth rate 0% (1993 est.)

Electricity

Industries

Agriculture

Dairy farming predominates; less than 50% self-sufficient in food; must import fish, refined sugar, fats and oils (other than butter), grains, eggs, fruits, vegetables, meat

Illicit Drugs

Money-laundering center

Economic Aid

Currency

1 Swiss franc, franken, or franco (SwF) = 100 centimes, rappen, or centesimi

Exchange Rates

Swiss francs, franken, or franchi (SwF) per US$1 - 1.1810 (January 1996), 1.1825 (1995), 1.3677 (1994), 1.4776 (1993), 1.4062 (1992), 1.4340 (1991), 1.3892 (1990)

Fiscal Year

Calendar year

TRANSPORTATION

Railroads

Highways

Inland Waterways

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

Pipelines

Crude oil 314 km; natural gas 1,506 km

Ports

Basel

Merchant Marine

Airports

COMMUNICATIONS

Telephone System

5,622,976 telephones (1986 est.); excellent domestic, international, and broadcast services

Radio

Television

DEFENSE FORCES

Branches

Army, Air Force and Antiaircraft Command

Manpower Availability

Males age 15-49 1,893,587; males fit for military service 1,623,414; males reach military age (20) annually 41,425 (1996 est.)

Defense Expenditures

Exchange rate conversion - $4.1 billion, 1.4% of GDP (1995)

History
World Atlas

last updated: 19 november 1997