Main page Compare countries Index countries Index fields

Query:
Jah-Jah.pl / Index countries / Switzerland (2004) - World (2003) / Compare countries
##ciekawa_strona##

Compare Switzerland (2004) - World (2003)

Compare Switzerland (2004) z World (2003)

 Switzerland (2004)World (2003)
 SwitzerlandWorld
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 268 nations, dependent areas, other, and miscellaneous entries
Age structure 0-14 years: 16.8% (male 647,362; female 602,333)


15-64 years: 67.9% (male 2,555,089; female 2,503,331)


65 years and over: 15.3% (male 466,615; female 676,137) (2004 est.)
0-14 years: 29.2% (male 932,581,592; female 885,688,851)


15-64 years: 63.7% (male 2,009,997,089; female 1,964,938,201)


65 years and over: 7.1% (male 193,549,180; female 247,067,032) (2003 est.)


note: some countries do not maintain age structure information, thus a slight discrepancy exists between the total world population and the total for world age structure
Agriculture - products grains, fruits, vegetables; meat, eggs -
Airports 65 (2003 est.) -
Airports - with paved runways total: 42


over 3,047 m: 3


2,438 to 3,047 m: 5


1,524 to 2,437 m: 10


914 to 1,523 m: 8


under 914 m: 16 (2004 est.)
-
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 23


under 914 m: 23 (2004 est.)
-
Area total: 41,290 sq km


land: 39,770 sq km


water: 1,520 sq km
total: 510.072 million sq km


land: 148.94 million sq km


water: 361.132 million sq km


note: 70.8% of the world's surface is water, 29.2% is land
Area - comparative slightly less than twice the size of New Jersey land area about 16 times the size of the US
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, 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. Globally, the 20th century was marked by: (a) two devastating world wars; (b) the Great Depression of the 1930s; (c) the end of vast colonial empires; (d) rapid advances in science and technology, from the first airplane flight at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina (US) to the landing on the moon; (e) the Cold War between the Western alliance and the Warsaw Pact nations; (f) a sharp rise in living standards in North America, Europe, and Japan; (g) increased concerns about the environment, including loss of forests, shortages of energy and water, the decline in biological diversity, and air pollution; (h) the onset of the AIDS epidemic; and (i) the ultimate emergence of the US as the only world superpower. The planet's population continues to explode: from 1 billion in 1820, to 2 billion in 1930, 3 billion in 1960, 4 billion in 1974, 5 billion in 1988, and 6 billion in 2000. For the 21st century, the continued exponential growth in science and technology raises both hopes (e.g., advances in medicine) and fears (e.g., development of even more lethal weapons of war).
Birth rate 9.83 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) 20.43 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Budget revenues: $123.2 billion


expenditures: $128 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.)
-
Capital Bern -
Climate temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy winters; cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers two large areas of polar climates separated by two rather narrow temperate zones form a wide equatorial band of tropical to subtropical climates
Coastline 0 km (landlocked) 356,000 km
Constitution revision of Constitution of 1874 approved by the Federal Parliament 18 December 1998; adopted by referendum 18 April 1999; officially entered into force 1 January 2000 -
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)
-
Currency Swiss franc (CHF) -
Death rate 8.44 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) 8.83 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)
Debt - external NA (2000) $2 trillion for less developed countries (2002 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Pamela P. WILLEFORD


embassy: Jubilaumsstrasse 93, CH-3005 Bern


mailing address: use embassy street address


telephone: [41] (031) 357 70 11


FAX: [41] (031) 357 73 44
-
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Christian BLICKENSTORFER


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
-
Disputes - international none Globally, there are over 250,000 km of international land boundaries that separate the world's 192 independent states, along with 70 dependencies, areas of special sovereignty, and other miscellaneous entities. Maritime states have claimed limits and have so far established over 130 maritime boundaries and joint development zones to allocate ocean resources and to provide for their national security at sea. On land, ethnicity, culture, race, religion, and language have divided states into separate political entities as much as history, physical terrain, political fiat, or conquest, resulting in sometimes arbitrary and imposed boundaries. All of these factors have contributed to a wide array of boundary, borderland, and territorial disagreements that vary in intensity from unresolved or dormant to outright war. Territorial disputes may evolve from historical and/or cultural animosities, or they may be brought on by resource competition. Ethnic clashes continue to be responsible for territorial fragmentation around the world. Undemarcated, indefinite, porous, and unmanaged boundaries encourage illegal cross-border activities, uncontrolled migration, and political confrontation over boundary allocations. Other sources of contention include the use of water and mineral (especially petroleum) resources, fisheries, dams, and nuclear power plants. Many islands or island groups are also disputed, including those at sea and in streams. Nonetheless, many nations are actively cooperating to clarify, delineate, and demarcate their international borders. The tragic aspect of international discord is the impact on the sustenance and welfare of populations caught in the conflict. It is frequently left to members of the world community to cope with enormous refugee situations, and the resultant hunger, disease, and impoverishment that they create.
Economic aid - donor ODA, $1.1 billion (1995) -
Economic aid - recipient - official development assistance (ODA) $50 billion
Economy - overview Switzerland is a prosperous and stable modern market economy with low unemployment, a highly skilled labor force, and a per capita GDP larger than that of the big Western European economies. The Swiss in recent years have brought their economic practices largely into conformity with the EU's to enhance their international competitiveness. Switzerland remains 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. Reflecting the anemic economic conditions of Europe, GDP growth dropped in 2001 to about 0.8%, to 0.2% in 2002, and to -0.3% in 2003. Growth in global output (gross world product, GWP) fell from 4.8% in 2000 to 2.2% in 2001 and 2.7% in 2002. The causes: sluggishness in the US economy (21% of GWP) and in the 15 EU economies (19% of GWP); continued stagnation in the Japanese economy (7.2% of GWP); and spillover effects in the less developed regions of the world. China, the second-largest economy in the world (12% of GWP), proved an exception, continuing its rapid annual growth, officially announced as 8% but estimated by many observers as perhaps two percentage points lower. Russia (2.6% of GWP), with 4% growth, continued to make uneven progress, its GDP per capita still only one-third that of the leading industrial nations. The other 14 successor nations of the USSR and the other old Warsaw Pact nations again experienced widely divergent growth rates; the three Baltic nations continued as strong performers, in the 5% range of growth. The developing nations also varied in their growth results, with many countries facing population increases that erode gains in output. Externally, the nation-state, as a bedrock economic-political institution, is steadily losing control over international flows of people, goods, funds, and technology. Internally, the central government often finds its control over resources slipping as separatist regional movements - typically based on ethnicity - gain momentum, e.g., in many of the successor states of the former Soviet Union, in the former Yugoslavia, in India, in Indonesia, and in Canada. Externally, the central government is losing decision-making powers to international bodies. In Western Europe, governments face the difficult political problem of channeling resources away from welfare programs in order to increase investment and strengthen incentives to seek employment. The addition of 80 million people each year to an already overcrowded globe is exacerbating the problems of pollution, desertification, underemployment, epidemics, and famine. Because of their own internal problems and priorities, the industrialized countries devote insufficient resources to deal effectively with the poorer areas of the world, which, at least from the economic point of view, are becoming further marginalized. The introduction of the euro as the common currency of much of Western Europe in January 1999, while paving the way for an integrated economic powerhouse, poses economic risks because of varying levels of income and cultural and political differences among the participating nations. The terrorist attacks on the US on 11 September 2001 accentuate a further growing risk to global prosperity, illustrated, for example, by the reallocation of resources away from investment to anti-terrorist programs. The opening of war in March 2003 between a US-led coalition and Iraq added new uncertainties to global economic prospects. (For specific economic developments in each country of the world in 2002, see the individual country entries.)
Electricity - consumption 53.43 billion kWh (2001) 13.93 trillion kWh (2001 est.)
Electricity - exports 34.54 billion kWh (2001) -
Electricity - imports 24.1 billion kWh (2001) -
Electricity - production 68.68 billion kWh (2001) 14.85 trillion kWh (2001 est.)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: NA%


hydro: NA%


nuclear: NA%


other: NA%
Elevation extremes lowest point: Lake Maggiore 195 m


highest point: Dufourspitze 4,634 m
lowest point: Bentley Subglacial Trench -2,540 m


note: in the oceanic realm, Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench is the lowest point, lying -10,924 m below the surface of the Pacific Ocean


highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m (1999 est.)
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 large areas subject to overpopulation, industrial disasters, pollution (air, water, acid rain, toxic substances), loss of vegetation (overgrazing, deforestation, desertification), loss of wildlife, soil degradation, soil depletion, erosion
Environment - international agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea
-
Ethnic groups German 65%, French 18%, Italian 10%, Romansch 1%, other 6% -
Exchange rates Swiss francs per US dollar - 1.3467 (2003), 1.5586 (2002), 1.6876 (2001), 1.6888 (2000), 1.5022 (1999) -
Executive branch chief of state: President Samuel SCHMID (since 1 January 2005); Vice President Moritz LEUENBERGER (since 1 January 2005); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government


head of government: President Samuel SCHMID (since 1 January 2005); Vice President Moritz LEUENBERGER (since 1 January 2005); 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 8 December 2004 (next to be held December 2005)


election results: Samuel SCHMID elected president; percent of Federal Assembly vote - 70.7%; Moritz LEUENBERGER elected vice president; percent of legislative vote - 64.8%
-
Exports 10,420 bbl/day (2001) 703.9 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Exports - commodities machinery, chemicals, metals, watches, agricultural products the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services
Exports - partners Germany 20.8%, US 11.3%, France 8.7%, Italy 8.3%, UK 4.9%, Japan 4% (2003) US 17.4%, Germany 7.6%, UK 5.4%, France 5.1%, Japan 4.8%, China 4% (2002)
Fiscal 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 -
GDP purchasing power parity - $239.3 billion (2003 est.) GWP (gross world product) - purchasing power parity - $49 trillion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 1.5%


industry: 34%


services: 64.5% (2003 est.)
agriculture: 4%


industry: 32%


services: 64% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $32,700 (2003 est.) purchasing power parity - $7,900 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate -0.5% (2003 est.) 2.7% (2001 est.)
Geographic coordinates 47 00 N, 8 00 E -
Geography - note landlocked; crossroads of northern and southern Europe; along with southeastern France, northern Italy, and southwestern Austria, has the highest elevations in the Alps the world is now thought to be about 4.55 billion years old, just about one-third of the 13-billion-year age estimated for the universe
Heliports 2 (2003 est.) -
Highways total: 71,011 km


paved: 71,011 km (including 1,638 of expressways)


unpaved: 0 km (2000)
total: NA km


paved: NA km


unpaved: NA km
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 2.6%


highest 10%: 25.2% (1992)
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs a major international financial center vulnerable to the layering and integration stages of money laundering; despite significant legislation and reporting requirements, secrecy rules persist and nonresidents are permitted to conduct business through offshore entities and various intermediaries; transit country for and consumer of South American cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin cocaine: worldwide, coca is grown on an estimated 205,450 hectares - almost exclusively in South America with 70% in Colombia; potential cocaine production during 2002 is estimated at 938 metric tons (or 1,200 metric tons of export quality cocaine at an average of 78% purity); coca eradication programs continue in Bolivia, Colombia, and Peru, and 292 metric tons of export quality cocaine are documented to have been seized in 2002; consumption of export quality cocaine is estimated to have been 875 metric tons


opiates: cultivation of opium poppy occurred on an estimated 141,213 hectares in 2002 and potentially produced 2,183 metric tons of opium - which conceivably could be converted to the equivalent of 238 metric tons of pure heroin; opium eradication programs have been undertaken in Afghanistan, Burma, Colombia, Mexico, Pakistan, Thailand, and Vietnam, and the annual average for opiates seized worldwide over the past five years (1998-2002) has been 45 metric tons of pure heroin equivalent; estimates for average annual consumption over this time period are 315 metric tons pure heroin equivalent
Imports 289,500 bbl/day (2001) 697.5 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Imports - commodities machinery, chemicals, vehicles, metals; agricultural products, textiles the whole range of industrial and agricultural goods and services
Imports - partners Germany 32.3%, France 10.8%, Italy 10.7%, US 5.5%, Netherlands 5%, Austria 4.2%, UK 4.1% (2003) US 11.2%, Germany 9.2%, China 7%, Japan 6.8%, France 4.7%, UK 4% (2002)
Independence 1 August 1291 (founding of the Swiss Confederation) -
Industrial production growth rate 0.4% (2003) 3% (2002 est.)
Industries machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments dominated by the onrush of technology, especially in computers, robotics, telecommunications, and medicines and medical equipment; most of these advances take place in OECD nations; only a small portion of non-OECD countries have succeeded in rapidly adjusting to these technological forces; the accelerated development of new industrial (and agricultural) technology is complicating already grim environmental problems
Infant mortality rate total: 4.43 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 4.94 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 3.89 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
total: 51.38 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 53.81 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 48.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 0.6% (2003 est.) developed countries 1% to 4% typically; developing countries 5% to 60% typically; national inflation rates vary widely in individual cases, from declining prices in Japan to hyperinflation in several Third World countries
International organization participation ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, EFTA, ESA, FAO, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Paris Club, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNOMIG, UNTSO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC -
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 10,350 (2000 est.)
Irrigated land 250 sq km (1998 est.) 2,714,320 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Federal Supreme Court (judges elected for six-year terms by the Federal Assembly) -
Labor force 3.72 million (2003) NA
Labor force - by occupation agriculture 4.6%, industry 26.3%, services 69.1% (1998) agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%
Land boundaries total: 1,852 km


border countries: Austria 164 km, France 573 km, Italy 740 km, Liechtenstein 41 km, Germany 334 km
the land boundaries in the world total 250,472 km (not counting shared boundaries twice)
Land use arable land: 10.42%


permanent crops: 0.61%


other: 88.97% (2001)
arable land: 10.58%


permanent crops: 1%


other: 88.42% (1998 est.)
Languages German (official) 63.7%, French (official) 19.2%, Italian (official) 7.6%, Romansch (official) 0.6%, other 8.9% Chinese, Mandarin 14.37%, Hindi 6.02%, English 5.61%, Spanish 5.59%, Bengali 3.4%, Portuguese 2.63%, Russian 2.75%, Japanese 2.06%, German, Standard 1.64%, Korean 1.28%, French 1.27% (2000 est.)


note: percents are for "first language" speakers only
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 all members of the UN plus Switzerland are parties to the statute that established the International Court of Justice (ICJ) or World Court
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 the basis of proportional representation to serve four-year terms)


elections: Council of States - last held in most cantons 19 October 2003 (each canton determines when the next election will be held); National Council - last held 19 October 2003 (next to be held NA October 2007)


election results: Council of States - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - CVP 15, FDP 14, SVP 8, SPS 6, other 3; National Council - percent of vote by party - SVP 26.6%, SPS 23.3%, FDP 17.3%, CVP 14.4%, Greens 7.4%, other small parties all under 5%; seats by party - SVP 55, SPS 54, FDP 36, CVP 28, Green Party 13, other small parties 14
-
Life expectancy at birth total population: 80.31 years


male: 77.51 years


female: 83.27 years (2004 est.)
total population: 63.95 years


male: 62 years


female: 70.23 years (2003 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 99% (1980 est.)


male:


female:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 77%


male: 83%


female: 71% (1995 est.)
Location Central Europe, east of France, north of Italy -
Map references Europe Physical Map of the World, Political Map of the World, Standard Time Zones of the World
Maritime claims none (landlocked) a variety of situations exist, but in general, most countries make the following claims: contiguous zone - 24 NM; continental shelf - 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation, or 200 NM or to the edge of the continental margin; exclusive fishing zone - 200 NM; exclusive economic zone - 200 NM; territorial sea - 12 NM; boundary situations with neighboring states prevent many countries from extending their fishing or economic zones to a full 200 NM; 43 nations and other areas that are landlocked include Afghanistan, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad, Czech Republic, Ethiopia, Holy See (Vatican City), Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malawi, Mali, Moldova, Mongolia, Nepal, Niger, Paraguay, Rwanda, San Marino, Slovakia, Swaziland, Switzerland, Tajikistan, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Turkmenistan, Uganda, Uzbekistan, West Bank, Zambia, Zimbabwe; two of these, Liechtenstein and Uzbekistan, are doubly landlocked
Merchant marine total: 30 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 604,843 GRT/1,050,914 DWT


by type: bulk 15, cargo 6, chemical tanker 3, container 3, petroleum tanker 2, specialized tanker 1


foreign-owned: Belgium 1, Netherlands 1, United Kingdom 6, United States 1


registered in other countries: 182 (2004 est.)
-
Military branches Land Forces, Air Force -
Military expenditures - dollar figure $2.548 billion (FY01) aggregate real expenditure on arms worldwide in 1999 remained at approximately the 1998 level, about three-quarters of a trillion dollars (1999 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 1% (FY01) roughly 2% of gross world product (1999 est.)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49: 1,890,091 (2004 est.) -
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49: 1,606,391 (2004 est.) -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males: 45,654 (2004 est.) -
National holiday Founding of the Swiss Confederation, 1 August (1291) -
Nationality noun: Swiss (singular and plural)


adjective: Swiss
-
Natural hazards avalanches, landslides, flash floods large areas subject to severe weather (tropical cyclones), natural disasters (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions)
Natural resources hydropower potential, timber, salt the rapid depletion of nonrenewable mineral resources, the depletion of forest areas and wetlands, the extinction of animal and plant species, and the deterioration in air and water quality (especially in Eastern Europe, the former USSR, and China) pose serious long-term problems that governments and peoples are only beginning to address
Net migration rate 4.05 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) -
Pipelines gas 1,831 km; oil 94 km; refined products 7 km (2004) -
Political parties and leaders 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) [Ruth GENNER]; 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) [Doris LEUTHARD, president]; Radical Free Democratic Party (Freisinnig-Demokratische Partei der Schweiz or FDP, Parti Radical-Democratique Suisse or PRD, Partitio Liberal-Radicale Svizzero or PLR) [Marianne KLEINER-SCHLAEPFER, 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) [Hans-Juerg FEHR, 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 -
Political pressure groups and leaders NA -
Population 7,450,867 (July 2004 est.) 6,302,309,691 (July 2003 est.)
Population below poverty line NA -
Population growth rate 0.54% (2004 est.) 1.17% (2003 est.)
Ports and harbors Basel Chiba, Houston, Kawasaki, Kobe, Marseille, Mina' al Ahmadi (Kuwait), New Orleans, New York, Rotterdam, Yokohama
Radio broadcast stations AM 4, FM 113 (plus many low power stations), shortwave 2 (1998) AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
Railways total: 4,533 km


standard gauge: 3,483 km 1.435-m gauge (3,472 km electrified)


narrow gauge: 1,004 km 1.000-m gauge (974 km electrified); 46 km 0.800-m gauge (46 km electrified) (2003)
total: 1,122,650 km includes about 190,000 to 195,000 km of electrified routes of which 147,760 km are in Europe, 24,509 km in the Far East, 11,050 km in Africa, 4,223 km in South America, and 4,160 km in North America; note - fastest speed in daily service is 300 km/hr attained by France's Societe Nationale des Chemins-de-Fer Francais (SNCF) Le Train a Grande Vitesse (TGV) - Atlantique line


broad gauge: 251,153 km


standard gauge: 710,754 km


narrow gauge: 239,430 km
Religions Roman Catholic 46.1%, Protestant 40%, other 5%, none 8.9% (1990) Christians 32.79% (of which Roman Catholics 17.33%, Protestants 5.62%, Orthodox 3.51%, Anglicans 1.31%), Muslims 19.6%, Hindus 13.31%, Buddhists 5.88%, Sikhs 0.38%, Jews 0.24%, other religions 12.83%, non-religious 12.53%, atheists 2.44% (2001 est.)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female


total population: 0.97 male(s)/female (2004 est.)
at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female


total population: 1.01 male(s)/female (2003 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal -
Telephone system general assessment: excellent domestic and international services


domestic: extensive cable and microwave radio relay networks


international: country code - 41; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean and Indian Ocean)
general assessment: NA


domestic: NA


international: NA
Telephones - main lines in use 5.419 million (2002) NA
Telephones - mobile cellular 6.172 million (2003) NA
Television broadcast stations 115 (plus 1,919 repeaters) (1995) NA
Terrain mostly mountains (Alps in south, Jura in northwest) with a central plateau of rolling hills, plains, and large lakes the greatest ocean depth is the Mariana Trench at 10,924 m in the Pacific Ocean
Total fertility rate 1.42 children born/woman (2004 est.) 2.65 children born/woman (2003 est.)
Unemployment rate 3.7% (2003 est.) 30% combined unemployment and underemployment in many non-industrialized countries; developed countries typically 4%-12% unemployment
Waterways 65 km


note: Rhine River between Basel-Rheinfelden and Schaffhausen-Bodensee, some canals, and 12 navigable lakes (2003)
-
Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.