Switzerland

Location

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

Population

Notable Population Centers

City	Population	Note
Zürich	415,367
Genève	201,741
Basel	177,595
Lausanne	139,111
Bern	121,631	Capital
Winterthur	111,840
Luzern	81,691
Sankt Gallen	75,833
Lugano	63,185
Biel/Bienne	55,120

Size

• 15,942 square miles
• 41,290 square kilometers
• slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey

History

The Swiss Confederation was founded in 1291 as a defensive alliance among three cantons. In succeeding years, other localities joined the original three. The Swiss Confederation secured its independence from the Holy Roman Empire in 1499. A constitution of 1848, which was modified in 1874 to allow voters to introduce referenda on proposed laws, replaced the confederation with a centralized federal government. The major European powers have long honored Switzerland's sovereignty and neutrality, and the country was not involved in either World War. The political and economic integration of Europe over the past half-century, as well as Switzerland's role in many UN and international organizations, has strengthened Switzerland's ties with its neighbors. However, the country did not officially become a UN member until 2002. Switzerland remains active in many UN and international organizations but retains a strong commitment to neutrality.  

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

Languages

German (or Swiss German) (official) 62.1%, French (official) 22.8%, Italian (official) 8%, English 5.7%, Portuguese 3.5%, Albanian 3.3%, Serbo-Croatian 2.3%, Spanish 2.3%, Romansh (official) 0.5%, other 7.9% (2019 est.)major-language sample(s): Das World Factbook, die unverzichtbare Quelle für grundlegende Informationen. (German)The World Factbook, une source indispensable d'informations de base. (French)L'Almanacco dei fatti del mondo, l'indispensabile fonte per le informazioni di base. (Italian)The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.note: shares sum to more than 100% because respondents could indicate more than one main language

Religions

Roman Catholic 34.4%, Protestant 22.5%, other Christian 5.7%, Muslim 5.4%, other 1.5%, none 29.4%, unspecified 1.1% (2020 est.)

Government

federal republic (formally a confederation)

• Constitution: history: previous 1848, 1874; latest adopted by referendum 18 April 1999, effective 1 January 2000amendment process: 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
• Political Parties and Leaders: n/a
• Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
• Legal System: civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts, except federal decrees of a general obligatory character
• Executive Branch: chief of state: President of the Swiss Confederation Karin KELLER-SUTTER (since 1 January 2025)head of government: President of the Swiss Confederation Karin KELLER-SUTTER (since 1 January 2025)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 termelection/appointment process: president and vice president elected by the Federal Assembly from among members of the Federal Council for a 1-year, non-consecutive termmost recent election date: 11 December 2024election results: 2024: Karin KELLER-SUTTER elected president for 2025; Federal Assembly vote - Karin KELLER-SUTTER (FDP.The Liberals) 168 of 203; Guy PARLEMIN (SVP) elected vice president for 2025; Federal Assembly vote - 196 of 2192023:  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 1962022:  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 223expected date of next election: December 2025note: the Federal Council, composed of 7 federal councilors, constitutes the federal government of Switzerland; council members rotate the 1-year term of federal president
• Judicial Branch: 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; judges are affiliated with political parties and are elected according to linguistic and regional criteria in approximate proportion to party representation in the Federal Assemblysubordinate courts: Federal Criminal Court (established in 2004); Federal Administrative Court (established in 2007)note: each of Switzerland's 26 cantons has its own courts
• Legislative Branch: legislature name: Federal Assembly (Bundesversammlung - Assemblée fédérale - Assemblea federale)legislative structure: bicameral

Demographic Profile

n/a

Economy

• 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
• Budget: revenues: $153.795 billion (2023 est.)expenditures: $152.488 billion (2023 est.)note: central government revenues (excluding grants) and expenditures converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated
• Credit Rating: n/a
• Natural Resources: hydropower potential, timber, salt
• Industries: machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments, tourism, banking, insurance, pharmaceuticals
• Agricultural Products: milk, sugar beets, wheat, potatoes, pork, apples, barley, beef, maize, grapes (2023)note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage
• Land Use: agricultural land: 37.9% (2022 est.)arable land: 10% (2022 est.)permanent crops: 0.6% (2022 est.)permanent pasture: 27.2% (2022 est.)forest: 32.3% (2022 est.)other: 29.8% (2022 est.)
• Labor Force by Occupation: n/a
• Imports
• Imported Commodities: gold, packaged medicine, vaccines, cars, jewelry (2023)note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars
• Import Partners: Germany 17%, USA 9%, Italy 8%, France 6%, China 5% (2023)note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports
• Exports
• Exported Commodities: gold, packaged medicine, vaccines, nitrogen compounds, base metal watches (2023)note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars
• Export Partners: Germany 14%, China 12%, USA 11%, Italy 5%, Turkey 5% (2023)note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports