Location: Central Europe, east of France

Geographic coordinates: 47 00 N, 8 00 E

Map references: Europe

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

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: 10%
permanent crops: 2%
permanent pastures: 28%
forests and woodland: 32%
other : 28% (1993 est.)

Irrigated land: 250 sq km (1993 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-Sulphur 85, 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: Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Law of the Sea

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

Population: 7,240,463 (July 1997 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 17% (male 643,301; female 614,913)
15-64 years: 68% (male 2,501,705; female 2,412,165)
65 years and over : 15% (male 429,754; female 638,625) (July 1997 est.)

Population growth rate: 0.33% (1997 est.)

Birth rate: 11.05 births/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Death rate: 9 deaths/1,000 population (1997 est.)

Net migration rate: 1.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1997 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
total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (1997 est.)

Infant mortality rate: 5 deaths/1,000 live births (1997 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 78.77 years
male : 75.59 years
female: 82.11 years (1997 est.)

Total fertility rate: 1.45 children born/woman (1997 est.)

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

Ethnic groups: total population - German 65%, French 18%, Italian 10%, Romansch 1%, other 6%
note : Swiss nationals - German 74%, French 20%, Italian 4%, Romansch 1%, other 1%

Religions: Roman Catholic 46.7%, Protestant 40%, other 5%, no religion 8.3% (1990)

Languages: German 63.7%, French 19.2%, Italian 7.6%, Romansch 0.6%, other 8.9%
note: figures for Swiss nationals only: German 74%, French 20%, Italian 4%, Romansch 1%, other 1%

Literacy:
definition : age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (1980 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA%

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)

Data code: SZ

Government type: federal republic

National 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:
chief of state : President Arnold KOLLER (since 1 January 1997); Vice President Flavio COTTI (since 1 January 1997); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Arnold KOLLER (since 1 January 1997); Vice President Flavio COTTI (since 1 January 1997); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
cabinet: Federal Council or German - Bundesrat, French - Conseil Federal, Italian - Consiglio Federale 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 4 December 1996 (next to be held NA December 1997)
election results: Arnold KOLLER elected president; percent of Federal Assembly vote - NA; Flavio COTTI elected vice president; percent of legislative vote - NA

Legislative branch: bicameral Federal Assembly or German - Bundesversammlung, French - Assemblee Federale, Italian - Assemblea Federale consists of the Council of States or German - Standerat, French - Conseil des Etats, Italian - Consiglio degli Stati (46 seats; members are elected two from each canton and one from each half canton to serve four-year terms) and the National Council or German - Nationalrat, French - Conseil National, Italian - Consiglio Nazionale (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 1995 (each canton determines when the next election will be held); National Council - last held 20 October 1995 (next to be held NA October 1999)
election results: Council of States - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRD 17, PDC 16, UDC 5, PSS 5, LPS 2, LdU 1; National Council - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PRD 45, PSS 55, PDC 34, UDC 29, Greens 10, LPS 7, FPS 6, LdU/EVP 5, SD 3, PdAdS 3, Ticino League 2, EDU 1

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

Political parties and leaders: 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) [Peter BODENMANN, president]; 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) [Anton COTTIER, president]; Swiss People's Party (Schweizerische Volkspartei or SVP, Union Democratique du Centre or UDC, Unione Democratica de Centro or UDC, Uniun Democratica da Center or UDC) [Ueli MAURER, 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) [Verena DIENER, president]; Freedom Party or FPS [Roland BORER]; Liberal Party (Liberale Partei der Schweiz or LPS, Parti Liberal Suisse or PLS, Partito Liberale Svizzero or PLS) [Francois Jeanneset, president]; Alliance of Independents' Party (Landesring der Unabhaengigen or LdU, Alliance des Independants or AdI) [Daniel ANDRES, president]; Ticino League (Lega dei Ticinesi) [Giuliano BIGNASCA, president]; and other minor parties including Swiss Democratic Party (Schweizer Demokraten or SD, Democrates Suisses or DS, Democratici Svizzeri or DS), Workers' Party (Parti Suisse du Travail or PST, Partei der Arbeit der Schweiz or PdAdS, Partito Svizzero del Lavoro or PSdL), Evangelical People's Party (Evangelische Volkspartei der Schweiz or EVP, Parti Evangelique Suisse or PEV, Partito Evangelico Svizzero or PEV), and the Union of Federal Democrats (Eidgenossisch-Demokratische Union or EDU, Union Democratique Federale or UDF, Unione Democratica Federale or UDF); note - see elections

International organization participation: 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), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMOP, UNMOT, UNOMIG, UNPREDEP, UNTAES, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Alfred DEFAGO (since April 1997)
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, Pago Pago (American Samoa), and San Francisco

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Madeleine May KUNIN (since 8 August 1996)
embassy: Jubilaeumstrasse 93, 3005 Bern
mailing address : use embassy street address
telephone: [41] (31) 357 70 11
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

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 continued economic difficulties. GDP has dropped for five consecutive quarters, unemployment is reaching record levels, and the fiscal deficit is again above 3% of GDP. In 1997, growth may reach barely 0.6%; a recovery is not likely before mid to late 1997. Weak domestic consumer demand is partly at fault; declining 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 in 1997 also is likely to be lower than the 1995 rate of 6.6%, but higher than 1996's expected 1.9%.

GDP: purchasing power parity - $161.3 billion (1996 est.)

GDP - real growth rate: -0.75% (1996 est.)

GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $22,600 (1996 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 2.8%
industry: 31.1%
services: 66.1% (1995)

Inflation rate - consumer price index: 0.8% (1996)

Labor force:
total: 3.776 million (939,000 foreign workers, mostly Italian)
by occupation: services 67%, manufacturing and construction 29%, agriculture and forestry 4% (1994)

Unemployment rate: 5.3% (December 1996)

Budget:
revenues: $31 billion
expenditures : $36.9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (1995)

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

Industrial production growth rate: -2% (1996 est.)

Electricity - capacity: 14.27 million kW (1994)

Electricity - production: 62.2 billion kWh (1995)

Electricity - consumption per capita: 6,810 kWh (1995 est.)

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

Exports:
total value: $81.35 billion (f.o.b., 1995)
commodities: manufactures 94.74%, agricultural products 2.99%, raw materials 2.05%, fuels 0.15% (1995)
partners: EU countries 62.1%, US 8.7%, Japan 4.0% (1996 est.)

Imports:
total value : $80.05 billion (c.i.f., 1995)
commodities: manufactures 86.81%, agricultural products 6.44%, raw materials 3.65%, fuels 2.93% (1995)
partners: EU 80.2%, US 6.6% (1996 est.)

Debt - external: $NA

Economic aid:
donor: ODA, $1.034 billion (1995)

Currency: 1 Swiss franc, franken, or franco (SFR) = 100 centimes, rappen, or centesimi

Exchange rates: Swiss francs, franken, or franchi (SFR) per US$1 - 1.3936 (January 1997), 1.2360 (1996), 1.1825 (1995), 1.3677 (1994), 1.4776 (1993), 1.4062 (1992)

Fiscal year: calendar year

Telephones: 4.573 million (1993 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)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 7, FM 265, shortwave 0

Radios: 2.727 million (1994 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 18 (repeaters 1,322)

Televisions: 2.513 million (1994 est.)

Railways:
total: 5,719 km (1,432 km double track)
standard gauge: 3,283 km 1.435-m gauge (99% electrified; 310 km nongovernment owned)
narrow gauge: 1,255 km 1.000-m gauge (99% electrified; 1,181 km nongovernment owned)
other gauge : 1,181 km NA-m gauge (1995)

Highways:
total: 71,055 km (including 1,540 km of expressways)
paved: NA km
unpaved: NA km (1995 est.)

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

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

Ports and harbors: Basel

Merchant marine:
total: 23 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 378,871 GRT/665,519 DWT
ships by type: bulk 13, cargo 1, chemical tanker 6, oil tanker 1, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1, specialized tanker 1 (1996 est.)

Airports: 67 (1996 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 66
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m : 4
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 40 (1996 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 1
914 to 1,523 m : 1 (1996 est.)

Military branches: Army, Air Force and Antiaircraft Command, Frontier Guards, Fortification Guards

Military manpower - military age: 20 years of age

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 1,889,213 (1997 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males : 1,617,691 (1997 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 41,038 (1997 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $3.74 billion (1995)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.4% (1995)

Disputes - international: none

Illicit drugs: money-laundering center; transit country for and consumer of South American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin