Reuters AlertNet - Switzerland

Switzerland

$Small country map\n© Microsoft Virtual Earth$

Capital:	Bern
Area size:	39550 sq. km Slightly larger than the Netherlands
Time zone:	Standard Time GMT +1, Summer Time GMT +2
Currency:	Swiss franc
Area code:	(+) 41
Driving:	Right
Climate description:	Temperate, but varies with altitude. Cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy winters. Cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers.

People

Standard of living

Economy & aid

Health

Disasters, conflict & migration

Language
German, French and Italian. A small minority speaks Rhaeto-Romanic.
Source: New Internationalist World Guide

Population

2007	7.5 million	U.N. Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) Population Division (2006)
2006	7.5 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2005	7.4 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2004	7.4 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2003	7.4 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2002	7.3 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2001	7.3 million	U.N. DESA (2006)
2000	7.3 million	U.N. DESA (2006)

Future population estimates
9.9 million (2050)
Source: U.N. DESA (2006)

Ethnic groups
Around two-thirds of the population are of German origin, while 18 percent and 13 percent are French and Italian respectively. Other groups include Portuguese, Germans and people from the former Yugoslavia.
Source: NI World Guide

Religion
Catholic 47 percent, Protestant 40 percent. There are Muslim and Orthodox Christian minorities.
Source: NI World Guide

Percentage urban population

2007	75.9 percent	U.N. DESA - World Urbanisation Prospects 2005
2006	75.5 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2005	75.2 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2004	74.8 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2003	74.4 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2002	74.0 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2001	73.5 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)
2000	73.1 percent	U.N. DESA (2005)

Year women granted right to vote
1971
Source: U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) Human Development Report
Where two figures are shown, the first refers to a partial recognition of the right to vote and the second to the year women received the right to vote on a universal and equal basis.

Net percentage of girls enrolled in primary education
No data available (2006)

Percentage of population under 15

2005	16.7 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008
2004	16.8 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2003	17.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2002	16.2 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
2001	16.5 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
2000	16.7 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2002

Average life expectancy

2005	81.3 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008
2004	80.7 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2003	80.5 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2002	79.1 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
2001	79.0 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
2000	78.9 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2002

Life expectancy - male

2005	78.5 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008
2004	77.8 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2003	77.6 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2002	75.9 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
2001	75.8 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
2000	75.6 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2002

Life expectancy - female

2005	83.7 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008
2004	83.4 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2003	83.2 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2002	82.3 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
2001	82.2 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
2000	82.0 years	UNDP - Human Development Report 2002

Infant mortality

2006	4 per 1,000 live births	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2008
2005	4 per 1,000 live births	U.N. Children's Fund (UNICEF) - State of the World's Children 2007
2004	5 per 1,000 live births	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2006
2003	4 per 1,000 live births	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2002	5 per 1,000 live births	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
2001	5 per 1,000 live births	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
2000	3 per 1,000 live births	UNDP - Human Development Report 2002

Child mortality - deaths before the age of five

2006	5 per 1,000 live births	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2008
2005	5 per 1,000 live births	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2007
2004	5 per 1,000 live births	UNICEF - State of the World's Children 2006
2003	5 per 1,000 live births	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2002	5 per 1,000 live births	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004

Births attended by skilled personnel
No data available percent

Maternal mortality

2005	5 per 100,000 live births	UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008
2000	7 per 100,000 live births	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006

Human development index (HDI rank)

2005	7	UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008
2004	9	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2003	7	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2002	11	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
2001	10	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
2000	11	UNDP - Human Development Report 2002

Percentage of children under weight for age (under age 5)
No data available percent

Percentage of undernourished population

2002-2004 average	<2.5 percent	U.N. Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) 2006
2001-2003average	<2.5 percent	FAO 2006

Food intake falls below the minimum requirement.

Population with access to improved water

2004	100 percent	UNICEF and World Health Organisation (WHO) 2006
2002	100 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2000	100 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004

Population with access to improved sanitation

2004	100 percent	UNICEF and WHO 2006
2002	100 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2000	100 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004

Literacy - average

2004	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2003	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2002	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
2001	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
2000	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2002

Literacy - male

2004	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2003	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2002	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
2001	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
2000	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2002

Literacy - female

2004	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2003	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2002	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
2001	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003
2000	99.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2002

Landlines telephones

2006	694 per 1,000 people	International Telecommunication Union (ITU) 2007
2005	690 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2004	709 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2003	723 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2002	740 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2001	743 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2000	726 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007

Cellular telephone subscribers

2006	1021 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2005	916 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2004	846 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2003	840 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2002	788 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2001	728 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2000	643 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007

Internet users

2006	600 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2005	509 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2004	472 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2003	448 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2002	412 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2001	387 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007
2000	291 per 1,000 people	ITU 2007

Transparency International corruption ranking (1=least corrupt, 179=most corrupt)

2007	7 (joint)	Transparency International 2007
2006	7	Transparency International
2005	7	Transparency International
2004	7	Transparency International
2003	8 (joint)	Transparency International
2002	12 (joint)	Transparency International
2001	12	Transparency International
2000	11 (joint)	Transparency International

Signatory of International Convention on the Prevention and Punishment for the crime of Genocide
Yes (1948)
Source: UNDP - Human Development Report

Signatory of the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
Yes (1984)
Source: UNDP - Human Development Report

Signatory of the Convention on the Rights of the Child
Yes (1989)
Source: UNDP - Human Development Report

International humanitarian aid flows
Access the Financial Tracking Service, a global real-time database which records all reported humanitarian aid - including that for NGOs, the Red Cross/Crescent Movement, bilateral aid, in-kind aid and private donations - searchable by country.
Source: Financial Tracking Service, ReliefWeb

Percentage of population living on less than US$1 a day
No data available percent

GNI per capita, Atlas method

2006	58050� current US$	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2005	56190 current US$	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2004	50010 current US$	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2003	42030 current US$	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2002	36280 current US$	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2001	37530 current US$	WorldBankDataProfileTables2008
2000	40110 current US$	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008

The purpose of the Atlas conversion factor is to reduce the impact of exchange rate fluctuations in a cross-country comparison of national incomes. The Atlas conversion factor for any year is the average of a country�s exchange rate (or alternative conversion factor) for that year and its exchange rates for the two preceding years.

GDP

2006	380.4 current US$ billions	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2005	365.9 current US$ billions	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2004	359.7 current US$ billions	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2003	322.8 current US$ billions	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2002	276.2 current US$ billions	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2001	250.3 current US$ billions	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008
2000	246.0 current US$ billions	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2008

Annual GDP growth

2005	1.9 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007
2004	2.1 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007
2003	-0.3 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007
2002	0.3 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007
2001	1 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007
2000	3.6 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007

Annual inflation

2005	0.6 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007
2004	0.5 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007
2003	1.2 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007
2002	1.6 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007
2001	0.6 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007
2000	0.8 percent	World Bank Data Profile Tables 2007

Share of income or consumption (poorest 10 percent)
2.9 (latest available year)
Source: UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008

Share of income or consumption (richest 10 percent)
25.9 (latest available year)
Source: UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008

Physicians

2000-2004	361 per 100,000 people	UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008
1990-2004	361 per 100,000 people	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
1990-2003	350 per 100,000 people	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
1990-2002	336 per 100,000 people	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003

Percentage HIV+ (adults aged 15-49)

2005	0.4 percent	U.N. Programme on HIV and AIDS (UNAIDS) 2006
2003	0.4 percent	UNAIDS 2006

Malaria
No risk
Source: WHO

TB cases

2006	7 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2005	7 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2004	8 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2003	8 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2002	8 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2001	8 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008
2000	9 per 100,000 people	WHO 2008

Chronology of natural disasters
Access EM-DAT, a database of natural disasters from 1900 to the present - death tolls and numbers of affected people - searchable by country.
Source: Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters, Catholic University of Louvain, Belgium

Number of refugees originating here

2006	36	Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
2005	16	UNHCR
2004	12	UNHCR
2003	35	UNHCR
2002	56	UNHCR
2001	61	UNHCR
2000	70	UNHCR

Number of refugees residing here

2006	48523	UNHCR
2005	48030	UNHCR
2004	47678	UNHCR
2003	50144	UNHCR
2002	54113	UNHCR
2001	58494	UNHCR
2000	57653	UNHCR

Number of internally displaced people\Estimate

	No data available

No data available

Landmine casualties per year

2004	0	Landmine Monitor Report 2005
2003	0	Landmine Monitor Report 2004

Casualty figures may include both civilians and military personnel injured or killed by landmines and unexploded ordnance.
Signatory to landmine convention?
Yes (1997 )
Source: Landmine Monitor Report

Percentage of GDP spent on military

2005	1.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008
2004	1.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2003	1.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005

Percentage of GDP spent on education

2002-2005	6.0 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008
2002-2004	5.4 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2000-2002	5.8 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
1999-2001	5.6 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
1998-2000	5.5 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003

Percentage of GDP spent on health

2004	6.7 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2007/2008
2003-2004	6.7 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2006
2002	6.5 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2005
2001	6.4 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2004
2000	5.9 percent	UNDP - Human Development Report 2003

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