Central Europe, East of France, North of Italy

Switzerland

Geography:

Location

Central Europe, east of France, north of Italy

Area

total: 41,290 sq km

Natural resources

hydropower potential, timber, salt

People:

Population

7,318,638 (July 2003 est.)

Nationality

noun: Swiss (singular and plural)

Ethnic groups

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

Religions

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

Languages

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

Government:

Country name

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

Executive branch

chief of state: President Pascal COUCHEPIN (since 1 January 2003); Vice President Ruth METZLER (since 1 January 2003); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government
head of government: President Pascal COUCHEPIN (since 1 January 2003); Vice President Ruth METZLER (since 1 January 2003); 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 NA December 2002 (next to be held NA December 2003)
election results: Pascal COUCHEPIN elected president; percent of Federal Assembly vote - NA%; Ruth METZLER elected vice president; percent of legislative vote - NA%

Economy:

GDP

purchasing power parity - $313.6 billion (2003 est.)

GDP - per capita

purchasing power parity - $42,700 (2003 est.)

Industries

machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments

Agriculture – products

grains, fruits, vegetables; meat, eggs

Exports – commodities

machinery, chemicals, metals, watches, agricultural products

Exports – partners

Germany 20.8%, US 10.0%, France 8.7%, Italy 8.2%, UK 4.8%, Thailand 0.57% (2003)

Imports – commodities

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

Imports – partners

Germany 32.2%, France 10.7%, Italy 10.6%, US 5.1%, Netherlands 4.9%, Thailand 0.47% (2003)

Currency

Swiss franc (CHF)

Fiscal year

calendar year