Switzerland

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

• landlocked;
• crossroads of northern and southern Europe;
• along with southeastern France, northern Italy, and southwestern Austria, has the highest elevations in the Alps

noun:

Swiss (singular and plural)

adjective:

Swiss

total:

44.2 years (2024 est.)

male:

43.5 years

female:

44.9 years

at birth:

1.05 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1.02 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.85 male(s)/female

total population:

0.99 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

total:

3 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)

male:

3.4 deaths/1,000 live births

female:

2.5 deaths/1,000 live births

total population:

83.9 years (2024 est.)

male:

82 years

female:

85.8 years

total:

9.41 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

beer:

3.17 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

wine:

4.35 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

spirits:

1.76 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

other alcohols:

0.12 liters of pure alcohol (2019 est.)

total:

25.5% (2020 est.)

male:

28.1% (2020 est.)

female:

22.9% (2020 est.)

total population:

NA

male:

NA

female:

NA

• air pollution from vehicle emissions;
• water pollution from agricultural fertilizers;
• chemical contaminants and erosion damage the soil and limit productivity;
• loss of biodiversity

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

urban population:

74.2% of total population (2023)

rate of urbanization:

0.79% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

particulate matter emissions:

8.97 micrograms per cubic meter (2019 est.)

carbon dioxide emissions:

34.48 megatons (2016 est.)

methane emissions:

4.98 megatons (2020 est.)

municipal solid waste generated annually:

6.056 million tons (2016 est.)

municipal solid waste recycled annually:

1.938 million tons (2015 est.)

percent of municipal solid waste recycled:

32% (2015 est.)

municipal:

970 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

industrial:

640 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

agricultural:

160 million cubic meters (2020 est.)

name:

Bern

geographic coordinates:

46 55 N, 7 28 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

origin of the name is uncertain but may derive from a 2nd century B.C. Celtic place name, possibly "berna" meaning "cleft," that was subsequently adopted by a Roman settlement

history:

previous 1848, 1874; latest adopted by referendum 18 April 1999, effective 1 January 2000

amendments:

• proposed by the two houses of the Federal Assembly or by petition of at least one hundred thousand voters (called the "federal popular initiative");
• passage of proposals requires majority vote in a referendum;
• following drafting of an amendment by the Assembly, its passage requires approval by majority vote in a referendum and approval by the majority of cantons;
• amended many times, last in 2018

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

at least one parent must be a citizen of Switzerland

dual citizenship recognized:

yes

residency requirement for naturalization:

12 years including at least 3 of the last 5 years prior to application

chief of state:

President of the Swiss Confederation Viola AMHERD (since 1 January 2024)

head of government:

President of the Swiss Confederation Viola AMHERD (since 1 January 2024)

cabinet:

Federal Council or Bundesrat (in German), Conseil Federal (in French), Consiglio Federale (in Italian) indirectly elected by the Federal Assembly for a 4-year term

elections/appointments:

• president and vice president elected by the Federal Assembly from among members of the Federal Council for a 1-year, non-consecutive term;
• election last held on 13 December 2023 (next to be held in December 2024)

election results:

• 2023: Viola AMHERD elected president for 2024;
• Federal Assembly vote - Viola AMHERD (The Center) 158 of 204;
• Karin Keller-Sutter (FDP.The Liberals) elected vice president for 2024;
• Federal Assembly vote - 138 of 196

;

• 2022: Alain BERSET elected president for 2023;
• Federal Assembly vote - Alain BERSET (SP) 140 OF 181;
• Viola AMHERD elected vice president;
• Federal assembly vote - 207 of 223

note: the Federal Council, comprised of 7 federal councillors, constitutes the federal government of Switzerland; council members rotate the 1-year term of federal president

highest court(s):

Federal Supreme Court (consists of 38 justices and 19 deputy justices organized into 7 divisions)

judge selection and term of office:

• judges elected by the Federal Assembly for 6-year terms;
• note - judges are affiliated with political parties and are elected according to linguistic and regional criteria in approximate proportion to the level of party representation in the Federal Assembly

subordinate courts:

• Federal Criminal Court (established in 2004);
• Federal Administrative Court (established in 2007);
• note - each of Switzerland's 26 cantons has its own courts

• The Center (Die Mitte, Alleanza del Centro, Le Centre, Allianza dal Center) (merger of the Christian Democratic People's Party and the Conservative Democratic Party)
• Evangelical Peoples' Party or EVP/PEV
• Federal Democrats or EDU
• Geneva Citizens Movement or MCR/MCG
• Green Liberal Party (Gruenliberale Partei or GLP, Parti vert liberale or PVL, Partito Verde-Liberale or PVL, Partida Verde Liberale or PVL)
• Green Party (Gruene Partei der Schweiz or Gruene, Parti Ecologiste Suisse or Les Verts, Partito Ecologista Svizzero or I Verdi, Partida Ecologica Svizra or La Verda)
• The Liberals or FDP.The Liberals (FDP.Die Liberalen, PLR.Les Liberaux-Radicaux, PLR.I Liberali, Ils Liberals)
• Social Democratic Party (Sozialdemokratische Partei der Schweiz or SP, Parti Socialiste Suisse or PSS, Partito Socialista Svizzero or PSS, Partida Socialdemocratica de la Svizra or PSS)
• Swiss People's Party (Schweizerische Volkspartei or SVP, Union Democratique du Centre or UDC, Unione Democratica di Centro or UDC, Uniun Democratica dal Center or UDC)

chief of mission:

Ambassador Ralph HECKNER (since 18 September 2024)

chancery:

2900 Cathedral Ave NW, Washington, DC 20008

telephone:

[1] (202) 745-7900

FAX:

[1] (202) 387-2564

email address and website:

[email protected]; https://www.eda.admin.ch/washington

consulate(s) general:

Atlanta, Chicago, New York, San Francisco

consulate(s):

Boston

chief of mission:

Ambassador Scott C. MILLER (since 11 January 2022) note - also accredited to Liechtenstein

embassy:

Sulgeneckstrasse 19, CH-3007 Bern

mailing address:

5110 Bern Place, Washington DC 20521-5110

telephone:

[41] (031) 357-70-11

FAX:

[41] (031) 357-73-20

email address and website:

https://ch.usembassy.gov/

total World Heritage Sites:

13 (9 cultural, 4 natural)

selected World Heritage Site locales:

• Old City of Berne (c);
• Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch (n);
• Monte San Giorgio (n);
• Abbey of St Gall (c);
• Three Castles, Defensive Wall, and Ramparts of the Market-Town of Bellinzona (c);
• Rhaetian Railway in the Albula/Bernina Landscapes (c);
• La Chaux-de-Fonds/Le Locle, Watchmaking Town Planning (c);
• Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps (c);
• Benedictine Convent of St John at Müstair (c);
• Lavaux, Vineyard Terraces (c)

• high-income, non-EU European economy;
• top ten in GDP per capita;
• renowned banking and financial hub;
• low unemployment and inflation;
• slowed GDP growth post-pandemic;
• highly skilled but aging workforce;
• key pharmaceutical and precision manufacturing exporter;
• leader in innovation and competitiveness indices

Fitch rating:

AAA (2000)

Moody's rating:

Aaa (1982)

Standard & Poors rating: AAA (1988)

note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.

total:

8% (2023 est.)

male:

8.3% (2023 est.)

female:

7.7% (2023 est.)

note: % of labor force ages 15-24 seeking employment

on food:

9.3% of household expenditures (2022 est.)

on alcohol and tobacco:

3.5% of household expenditures (2022 est.)

lowest 10%:

2.9% (2020 est.)

highest 10%:

26.4% (2020 est.)

note: % share of income accruing to lowest and highest 10% of population

Number of operational nuclear reactors:

4 (2023)

Net capacity of operational nuclear reactors:

2.97GW (2023 est.)

Percent of total electricity production:

32.4% (2023 est.)

Number of nuclear reactors permanently shut down:

2 (2023)

consumption:

161,000 metric tons (2022 est.)

exports:

3.3 metric tons (2022 est.)

imports:

184,000 metric tons (2022 est.)

total petroleum production:

300 bbl/day (2023 est.)

refined petroleum consumption:

193,000 bbl/day (2023 est.)

consumption:

3.138 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)

imports:

3.099 billion cubic meters (2022 est.)

general assessment:

• Switzerland has one of the highest broadband penetration rates within Europe, with a focus on services of at least 1Gb/s;
• this has been supported by sympathetic regulatory measures as well as by cooperative agreements between the main telcos, and with local utilities;
• fast fiber is complemented by 5G services reaching about 97% of the population by early 2021;
• together, these networks will soon enable the telcos to provide ultra-fast broadband services nationally, ahead of most other countries in the region;
• the competitive mobile market is served by three network operators and a small number of MVNOs;
• 5G services offered by the MNOs offer data rates of up to 2Gb/s, and although various cantons have called a halt to extensions of 5G, citing health concerns, the regulator and environment ministry have put in place measures aimed at ensuring that network roll outs can continue without disruption;
• with the migration of subscribers to LTE and 5G networks, the MNOs have been able to begin closing down their GSM networks and repurpose physical assets and spectrum;
• although not a member of the EU, the country’s economic integration has meant that its telecom market deregulation has followed the EU’s liberalization framework, including the recent regulations on international voice roaming;
• this report presents an analysis of Switzerland’s fixed-line telecom market, including an assessment of network infrastructure (2021)

domestic:

fixed-line is 33 per 100 and mobile-cellular subscribership is 120 per 100 persons (2022)

international:

country code - 41; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean)

• the publicly owned radio and TV broadcaster, Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SRG/SSR), operates 8 national TV networks, 3 broadcasting in German, 3 in French, and 2 in Italian;
• private commercial TV stations broadcast regionally and locally;
• TV broadcasts from stations in Germany, Italy, and France are widely available via multi-channel cable and satellite TV services;
• SRG/SSR operates 17 radio stations that, along with private broadcasters, provide national to local coverage ) (2019)

number of registered air carriers:

6 (2020); inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers: 179

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers:

28,857,994 (2018)

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers:

1,841,310,000 (2018) mt-km

total:

17 (2023)

by type:

bulk carrier 14, general cargo 1, other 2 (includes Liechtenstein)

• approximately 100,000, including cadre/professionals, conscripts, and militia;
• the Swiss Armed Forces consist of a small core of cadre/professional personnel along with a mix of militia and up to 20,000 conscripts brought in each year for training (2024)

• the military's inventory includes a mix of domestically produced and imported European and US weapons systems;
• the Swiss defense industry produces a range of military land vehicles (2024)

• 18-30 years of age for compulsory military service for men;
• 18 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women;
• every Swiss male has to serve at least 245 days in the armed forces;
• conscripts receive 18 weeks of mandatory training, followed by six 19-day intermittent recalls for training during the next 10 years (2024)

note: conscientious objectors can choose 390 days of community service instead of military service; as of 2023, women comprised about 1% of the active Swiss military