Jurisdictions - Switzerland

Report on Switzerland

Introduction | Geography | People | Government | Economy| Communications | Transportation | Military | Transnational Issues

Switzerland's independence and neutrality have long been honored by the major European powers and Switzerland 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, may be rendering obsolete the country's concern for neutrality.

Central Europe, east of France, north of Italy

47 00 N, 8 00 E

Europe

Area:

total:  41,290 sq km

land:  39,770 sq km

water:  1,520 sq km

slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey

total:  1,852 km

border countries:  Austria 164 km, France 573 km, Italy 740 km, Liechtenstein 41 km, Germany 334 km

0 km (landlocked)

none (landlocked)

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

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

hydropower potential, timber, salt

arable land:  10%

permanent crops:  2%

permanent pastures:  28%

forests and woodland:  32%

other:  28% (1993 est.)

250 sq km (1993 est.)

avalanches, landslides, flash floods

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

party to:  Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, 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

signed, but not ratified:  Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea

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

7,283,274 (July 2001 est.)

0-14 years:  16.97% (male 634,030; female 601,929)

15-64 years:  67.73% (male 2,505,450; female 2,427,408)

65 years and over:  15.3% (male 453,366; female 661,091) (2001 est.)

0.27% (2001 est.)

10.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.)

8.77 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.)

1.37 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.)

at birth:  1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:  1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years:  1.03 male(s)/female

65 years and over:  0.69 male(s)/female

total population:  0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.)

4.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.)

total population:  79.73 years

male:  76.85 years

female:  82.76 years (2001 est.)

1.47 children born/woman (2001 est.)

0.46% (1999 est.)

17,000 (1999 est.)

150 (1999 est.)

noun:  Swiss (singular and plural)

adjective:  Swiss

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

Roman Catholic 46.1%, Protestant 40%, other 5%, none 8.9% (1990)

German (official) 63.7%, French (official) 19.2%, Italian (official) 7.6%, Romansch 0.6%, other 8.9%

definition:  age 15 and over can read and write

total population:  99% (1980 est.)

male:  NA%

female:  NA%

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)

federal republic

Bern

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

1 August 1291 (Founding of the Swiss Confederation)

Founding of the Swiss Confederation, 1 August (1291)

29 May 1874

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

18 years of age; universal

chief of state:  President Moritz LEUENBERGER (since 1 January 2001); Vice President Kaspar VILLIGER (since 1 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government

head of government:  President Moritz LEUENBERGER (since 1 January 2001); Vice President Kaspar VILLIGER (since 1 January 2001); 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 6 December 2000 (next to be held NA December 2001)

election results:  Moritz LEUENBERGER elected president; percent of Federal Assembly vote - 76%; Kaspar VILLIGER elected vice president; percent of legislative vote - 72%

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 in 1999 (each canton determines when the next election will be held); National Council - last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2003)

election results:  Council of States - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FDP 18, CVP 15, SVP 7, SPS 6; National Council - percent of vote by party - SPS 22.5%, SVP 22.6%, FDP 19.9%, CVP 15.8%, other small parties all under 5%; seats by party - SPS 51, SVP 44, FDP 43, CVP 35, Greens 9, other small parties 18

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

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) [Adalbert DURRER, president]; 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) [Ruedi BAUMANN, president]; Radical Free Democratic Party (Freisinnig-Demokratische Partei der Schweiz or FDP, Parti Radical-Democratique Suisse or PRD, Partitio Liberal-Radicale Svizzero or PLR) [Franz STEINEGGER, 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) [Christiane BRUNNER, 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

NA

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), MONUC, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN (observer), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

chief of mission:  Ambassador Alfred DEFAGO

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, and San Francisco

consulate(s):  Boston

chief of mission:  Ambassador Mercer REYNOLDS

embassy:  Jubilaeumstrasse 93, 3001 Bern

mailing address:  use embassy street address

telephone:  [41] (031) 357 70 11

FAX:  [41] (031) 357 73 44

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

Switzerland, a prosperous and stable modern market economy with a per capita GDP 20% above that of the big western European economies, experienced solid growth of 3% in 2000, but growth is expected to fall back to about 2% in 2001. The Swiss in recent years have brought their economic practices largely into conformity with the EU's to enhance their international competitiveness. Although the Swiss are not pursuing full EU membership in the near term, in 1999 Bern and Brussels signed agreements to further liberalize trade ties, and the agreements should come into force in 2001. Switzerland is still considered a safe haven for investors, because it has maintained a degree of bank secrecy and has kept up the franc's long-term external value.

purchasing power parity - $207 billion (2000 est.)

3% (2000 est.)

purchasing power parity - $28,600 (2000 est.)

agriculture:  2.8%

industry:  31.1%

services:  66.1% (1995)

NA%

lowest 10%:  2.8%

highest 10%:  25.2% (1992)

1.5% (2000 est.)

3.9 million (964,000 foreign workers, mostly Italian) (1998 est.)

services 69.1%, industry 26.3%, agriculture 4.6% (1998 est.)

1.9% (2000 est.)

revenues:  $32.66 billion

expenditures:  $34.89 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.3 billion (1998 est.)

machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments

8.6% (2000 est.)

66.768 billion kWh (1999)

fossil fuel:  3.44%

hydro:  59.16%

nuclear:  35.43%

other:  1.97% (1999)

51.862 billion kWh (1999)

31.955 billion kWh (1999)

21.723 billion kWh (1999)

grains, fruits, vegetables; meat, eggs

$91.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000)

machinery, chemicals, metals, watches, agricultural products

EU 65.8% (Germany 22.6%, France 9.2%, Italy 8.0%, UK 5.5%, Austria 3.2%), US 12.4%, Japan 4.0% (1999)

$91.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000)

machinery, chemicals, vehicles, metals; agricultural products, textiles

EU 77.7% (Germany 31.0%, France 12.0%, Italy 9.7%, Netherlands 5.1%, UK 5.7%), US 7.1%, Japan 2.9% (1999)

$NA

ODA, $1.1 billion (1995)

Swiss franc (CHF)

CHF

Swiss francs per US dollar - 1.6303 (January 2001), 1.6888 (2000), 1.5022 (1999), 1.4498 (1998), 1.4513 (1997), 1.2360 (1996)

calendar year

4.82 million (1998)

1.967 million (1999)

general assessment:  excellent domestic and international services

domestic:  extensive cable and microwave radio relay networks

international:  satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean)

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

7.1 million (1997)

115 (plus 1,919 repeaters) (1995)

3.31 million (1997)

.ch

44 (Switzerland and Liechtenstein) (2000)

2.4 million (2000)

total:  4,358 km

standard gauge:  3,440 km 1.435-m gauge

narrow gauge:  908 km 1.000-m gauge; 14 km 0.800-m gauge

note:  Swiss railways are virtually all electrified (2001)

total:  71,059 km (including 1,638 km of expressways)

paved:  71,059 km

unpaved:  0 km (1999)

65 km

note:  The Rhine carries heavy traffic on the Basel-Rheinfelden and Schaffhausen-Bodensee stretches; there are also 12 navigable lakes

crude oil 314 km; natural gas 1,506 km

Basel

total:  24 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 435,966 GRT/780,458 DWT

ships by type:  bulk 12, cargo 6, chemical tanker 5, petroleum tanker 1

note:  includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: UK 1 (2000 est.)

67 (2000 est.)

total:  42

over 3,047 m:  3

2,438 to 3,047 m:  4

1,524 to 2,437 m:  13

914 to 1,523 m:  7

under 914 m:  15 (2000 est.)

total:  25

under 914 m:  25 (2000 est.)

Army, Air Force, Frontier Guards, Fortification Guards

20 years of age

males age 15-49:  1,849,034 (2001 est.)

males age 15-49:  1,570,918 (2001 est.)

males:  42,597 (2001 est.)

$3.1 billion (FY98)

1.2% (FY98)

none

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