Country Profile of the Week - Switzerland



Land & People

• There are 4 official languages in Switzerland : Swiss German, French, Italian, and Romansh.
• Zurich and Geneva have the highest quality of living in the world!
• Switzerland has the second highest life expectancy in Europe.
• There are 32 mountain peaks above 4000m in Swtizerland, the highest of which Dufourspitze

History & Politics

• Switzerland has a long and strong tradition of political and military neutrality, but joined the United Nations in 2002.
• Switzerland has been independent since 1499.
• Switzerland is the first and only country to implement people's rights system of government also known as direct democracy.
• There are 26 cantons in Switzerland, ech of which acts as a state, with its own constitution, legislature, government and courts.

Business & Economy 

• Switzerland has the 4th highest nomial Growth Domestic Product income per capita in the world.
• Switzerland has the second highest emplyment rate of any Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development after Iceland.
• The wristwatch was invented in Switzerland by Patek Philippe in 1868.
• Some of the world's famous companies are Swiss, Logitech, Nestle, Schindler, and Swatch are based in Switzerland.

Read more at:

http://www.eupedia.com/switzerland/trivia.shtml