Switzerland (2001) | Reunion (2005) | |
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 | none (overseas department of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 4 arrondissements, 24 communes, and 47 cantons |
Age structure | 0-14 years:
16.97% (male 634,030; female 601,929) 15-64 years: 67.73% (male 2,505,450; female 2,427,408) 65 years and over: 15.3% (male 453,366; female 661,091) (2001 est.) |
0-14 years: 30.4% (male 120,698/female 115,108)
15-64 years: 63.6% (male 243,668/female 250,143) 65 years and over: 6.1% (male 19,234/female 28,097) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grains, fruits, vegetables; meat, eggs | sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn |
Airports | 67 (2000 est.) | 2 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total:
42 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 13 914 to 1,523 m: 7 under 914 m: 15 (2000 est.) |
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total:
25 under 914 m: 25 (2000 est.) |
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Area | total:
41,290 sq km land: 39,770 sq km water: 1,520 sq km |
total: 2,517 sq km
land: 2,507 sq km water: 10 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey | slightly smaller than Rhode Island |
Background | Switzerland's independence and neutrality have long been honored by the major European powers and Switzerland was not involved in either of the two World Wars. The political and economic integration of Europe over the past half century, as well as Switzerland's role in many UN and international organizations, may be rendering obsolete the country's concern for neutrality. | The Portuguese discovered the uninhabited island in 1513. From the 17th to the 19th centuries, French immigration, supplemented by influxes of Africans, Chinese, Malays, and Malabar Indians, gave the island its ethnic mix. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 cost the island its importance as a stopover on the East Indies trade route. |
Birth rate | 10.12 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 19.26 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues:
$32.66 billion expenditures: $34.89 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.3 billion (1998 est.) |
revenues: $1.26 billion
expenditures: $2.62 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (1998) |
Capital | Bern | Saint-Denis |
Climate | temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy winters; cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers | tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cool and dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April |
Coastline | 0 km (landlocked) | 207 km |
Constitution | 29 May 1874 | 4 October 1958 (French Constitution) |
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) |
conventional long form: Department of Reunion
conventional short form: Reunion local long form: none local short form: Ile de la Reunion former: Bourbon Island |
Currency | Swiss franc (CHF) | - |
Death rate | 8.77 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 5.48 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $NA | $NA |
Dependency status | - | overseas department of France |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador J. Richard FREDERICKS embassy: Jubilaeumstrasse 93, 3001 Bern mailing address: use embassy street address telephone: [41] (31) 357 70 11 FAX: [41] (31) 357 73 44 |
none (overseas department of France) |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission:
Ambassador Alfred DEFAGO 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, and San Francisco consulate(s): Boston |
none (overseas department of France) |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - donor | ODA, $1.1 billion (1995) | - |
Economic aid - recipient | - | NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France (2001 est.) |
Economy - overview | Switzerland, a prosperous and stable modern market economy with a per capita GDP 20% above that of the big western European economies, experienced solid growth of 3% in 2000, but growth is expected to fall back to about 2% in 2001. The Swiss in recent years have brought their economic practices largely into conformity with the EU's to enhance their international competitiveness. Although the Swiss are not pursuing full EU membership in the near term, in 1999 Bern and Brussels signed agreements to further liberalize trade ties, and the agreements should come into force in 2001. Switzerland is still considered a safe haven for investors, because it has maintained a degree of bank secrecy and has kept up the franc's long-term external value. | The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports. The government has been pushing the development of a tourist industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better off than other segments of the population, often approaching European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent. The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from France. |
Electricity - consumption | 51.862 billion kWh (1999) | 1.084 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 31.955 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 21.723 billion kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 66.768 billion kWh (1999) | 1.166 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel:
3.44% hydro: 59.16% nuclear: 35.43% other: 1.97% (1999) |
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Elevation extremes | lowest point:
Lake Maggiore 195 m highest point: Dufourspitze 4,634 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Piton des Neiges 3,069 m |
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 | NA |
Environment - international agreements | party to:
Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, 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: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Law of the Sea |
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Ethnic groups | German 65%, French 18%, Italian 10%, Romansch 1%, other 6% | French, African, Malagasy, Chinese, Pakistani, Indian |
Exchange rates | Swiss francs per US dollar - 1.6303 (January 2001), 1.6888 (2000), 1.5022 (1999), 1.4498 (1998), 1.4513 (1997), 1.2360 (1996) | euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state:
President Moritz LEUENBERGER (since 1 January 2001); Vice President Kaspar VILLIGER (since 1 January 2001); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Moritz LEUENBERGER (since 1 January 2001); Vice President Kaspar VILLIGER (since 1 January 2001); 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 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 6 December 2000 (next to be held NA December 2001) election results: Moritz LEUENBERGER elected president; percent of Federal Assembly vote - 76%; Kaspar VILLIGER elected vice president; percent of legislative vote - 72% |
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May 1995), represented by Prefect Laurent CAYREL (since 16 July 2005)
head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993) cabinet: NA elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the General and Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils |
Exports | $91.3 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA |
Exports - commodities | machinery, chemicals, metals, watches, agricultural products | sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%, (1993) |
Exports - partners | EU 65.8% (Germany 22.6%, France 9.2%, Italy 8.0%, UK 5.5%, Austria 3.2%), US 12.4%, Japan 4.0% (1999) | France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2000) |
Fiscal year | calendar year | calendar year |
Flag description | red square with a bold, equilateral white cross in the center that does not extend to the edges of the flag | the flag of France is used |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $207 billion (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture:
2.8% industry: 31.1% services: 66.1% (1995) |
agriculture: 8%
industry: 19% services: 73% (2000 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $28,600 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $6,000 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 3% (2000 est.) | 2.5% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 47 00 N, 8 00 E | 21 06 S, 55 36 E |
Geography - note | landlocked; crossroads of northern and southern Europe; along with southeastern France and northern Italy, contains the highest elevations in Europe | this mountainous, volcanic island has an active volcano, Piton de la Fournaise; there is a tropical cyclone center at Saint-Denis, which is the monitoring station for the whole of the Indian Ocean |
Highways | total:
71,059 km (including 1,638 km of expressways) paved: 71,059 km unpaved: 0 km (1999) |
total: 1,214 km (including 88 km of four-lane roads) (2001) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%:
2.8% highest 10%: 25.2% (1992) |
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | because of more stringent government regulations, used significantly less as a money-laundering center; transit country for and consumer of South American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin | - |
Imports | $91.6 billion (f.o.b., 2000) | NA |
Imports - commodities | machinery, chemicals, vehicles, metals; agricultural products, textiles | manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products |
Imports - partners | EU 77.7% (Germany 31.0%, France 12.0%, Italy 9.7%, Netherlands 5.1%, UK 5.7%), US 7.1%, Japan 2.9% (1999) | France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2000) |
Independence | 1 August 1291 (Founding of the Swiss Confederation) | none (overseas department of France) |
Industrial production growth rate | 8.6% (2000 est.) | NA% |
Industries | machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments | sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction |
Infant mortality rate | 4.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) | total: 7.78 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.52 deaths/1,000 live births female: 6.99 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 1.5% (2000 est.) | NA% |
International organization participation | ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EFTA, ESA, FAO, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MONUC, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN (observer), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC | InOC, UPU, WFTU |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 44 (Switzerland and Liechtenstein) (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | 250 sq km (1993 est.) | 120 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Federal Supreme Court (judges elected for six-year terms by the Federal Assembly) | Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel |
Labor force | 3.9 million (964,000 foreign workers, mostly Italian) (1998 est.) | 309,900 (2000) |
Labor force - by occupation | services 69.1%, industry 26.3%, agriculture 4.6% (1998 est.) | agriculture 13%, industry 12%, services 75% (2000) |
Land boundaries | total:
1,852 km border countries: Austria 164 km, France 573 km, Italy 740 km, Liechtenstein 41 km, Germany 334 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land:
10% permanent crops: 2% permanent pastures: 28% forests and woodland: 32% other: 28% (1993 est.) |
arable land: 13.6%
permanent crops: 1.2% other: 85.2% (2001) |
Languages | German (official) 63.7%, French (official) 19.2%, Italian (official) 7.6%, Romansch 0.6%, other 8.9% | French (official), Creole widely used |
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 | French law |
Legislative branch | bicameral Federal Assembly or Bundesversammlung (in German), Assemblee Federale (in French), Assemblea Federale (in Italian) consists of the Council of States or Standerat (in German), Conseil des Etats (in French), Consiglio degli Stati (in Italian) (46 seats - members serve four-year terms) and the National Council or Nationalrat (in German), Conseil National (in French), Consiglio Nazionale (in Italian) (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 in 1999 (each canton determines when the next election will be held); National Council - last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2003) election results: Council of States - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - FDP 18, CVP 15, SVP 7, SPS 6; National Council - percent of vote by party - SPS 22.5%, SVP 22.6%, FDP 19.9%, CVP 15.8%, other small parties all under 5%; seats by party - SPS 51, SVP 44, FDP 43, CVP 35, Greens 9, other small parties 18 |
unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to be held NA); Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be held NA 2010) election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10, UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council (second round) - percent of vote by party - PCR 44.9%, UMP 32.8%, PS-Greens 22.3%; seats by party - PCR 27, UMP 11, PS-Greens 7 note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate; elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Reunion also elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1, PCR 1 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population:
79.73 years male: 76.85 years female: 82.76 years (2001 est.) |
total population: 73.95 years
male: 70.55 years female: 77.52 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% (1980 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 88.9% male: 87% female: 90.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Central Europe, east of France, north of Italy | Southern Africa, island in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar |
Map references | Europe | World |
Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm |
Merchant marine | total:
24 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 435,966 GRT/780,458 DWT ships by type: bulk 12, cargo 6, chemical tanker 5, petroleum tanker 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: UK 1 (2000 est.) |
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 28,264 GRT/44,885 DWT
by type: chemical tanker 1 foreign-owned: 1 (France 1) registered in other countries: 1 (2005) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of France |
Military branches | Army, Air Force, Frontier Guards, Fortification Guards | no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (includes Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $3.1 billion (FY98) | - |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.2% (FY98) | - |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49:
1,849,034 (2001 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49:
1,570,918 (2001 est.) |
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Military manpower - military age | 20 years of age | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males:
42,597 (2001 est.) |
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National holiday | Founding of the Swiss Confederation, 1 August (1291) | Bastille Day, 14 July (1789) |
Nationality | noun:
Swiss (singular and plural) adjective: Swiss |
noun: Reunionese (singular and plural)
adjective: Reunionese |
Natural hazards | avalanches, landslides, flash floods | periodic, devastating cyclones (December to April); Piton de la Fournaise on the southeastern coast is an active volcano |
Natural resources | hydropower potential, timber, salt | fish, arable land, hydropower |
Net migration rate | 1.37 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | crude oil 314 km; natural gas 1,506 km | - |
Political parties and leaders | 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) [Adalbert DURRER, 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) [Ruedi BAUMANN, president]; 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) [Christiane BRUNNER, president]; Swiss People's Party (Schweizerische Volkspartei or SVP, Union Democratique du Centre or UDC, Unione Democratica de Centro or UDC, Uniun Democratica dal Center or UDC) [Ueli MAURER, president]; and other minor parties | Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS [Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert GERARD]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP [leader NA] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 7,283,274 (July 2001 est.) | 776,948 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 0.27% (2001 est.) | 1.38% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Basel | Le Port |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 4, FM 113 (plus many low power stations), shortwave 2 (1998) | AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001) |
Radios | 7.1 million (1997) | - |
Railways | total:
4,492 km (1,564 km double track) standard gauge: 3,317 km 1.435-m gauge (3,288 km electrified) narrow gauge: 1,165 km 1.000-m gauge (1,165 km electrified); 10 km 0.800-m gauge (1998) |
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Religions | Roman Catholic 46.1%, Protestant 40%, other 5%, none 8.9% (1990) | Roman Catholic 86%, Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist (1995) |
Sex ratio | at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.97 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment:
excellent domestic and international services domestic: extensive cable and microwave radio relay networks international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean) |
general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network international: country code - 262; radiotelephone communication to Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); fiber optic submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe and Asia |
Telephones - main lines in use | 4.82 million (1998) | 300,000 est (2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 1.967 million (1999) | 489,800 (2002) |
Television broadcast stations | 115 (plus 1,919 repeaters) (1995) | 35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001) |
Terrain | mostly mountains (Alps in south, Jura in northwest) with a central plateau of rolling hills, plains, and large lakes | mostly rugged and mountainous; fertile lowlands along coast |
Total fertility rate | 1.47 children born/woman (2001 est.) | 2.47 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 1.9% (2000 est.) | 36% (1999 est.) |
Waterways | 65 km
note: The Rhine carries heavy traffic on the Basel-Rheinfelden and Schaffhausen-Bodensee stretches; there are also 12 navigable lakes |
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