Federal President (rotating): Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf (until 1 Jan 2013)
Population
78,868,711
7,925,517
Life Expectancy
70.350 years
81.170 years
Capital City
Tehran
Bern
Largest city
Tehran (population: 7,153,310)
Zurich (population: 341,730)
Human Development Index
0.777
0.955
GDP per capita
$13,200 US
$43,900 US
Literacy Rate
77%
99%
Corruption Perception Index
2.3
9
Percentage of Women in Parliament
2.8%
27.2%
Wealthiest Citizens
NA
Ernesto Bertarelli ($8.2bn US)
Unemployment Rate
15.300%
3.100%
Death Penalty
Legal
Abolished
Political System
theocratic republic
formally a confederation but similar in structure to a federal republic
Independence date
1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed)
1 August 1291 (founding of the Swiss Confederation)
Religions
Muslim 98% (Shia 89%, Sunni 9%), other (includes Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i) 2%
Roman Catholic 41.8%, Protestant 35.3%, Muslim 4.3%, Orthodox 1.8%, other Christian 0.4%, other 1%, unspecified 4.3%, none 11.1% (2000 census)
Languages
Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2%
German (official) 63.7%, French (official) 20.4%, Italian (official) 6.5%, Serbo-Croatian 1.5%, Albanian 1.3%, Portuguese 1.2%, Spanish 1.1%, English 1%, Romansch (official) 0.5%, other 2.8% (2000 census) note: German, French, Italian, and Romansch are all national and official languages
Exports
petroleum 80%, chemical and petrochemical products, fruits and nuts, carpets
Iranian rials (IRR) per US dollar - 9,142.8 (2008 est.), 9,407.5 (2007), 9,227.1 (2006), 8,964 (2005), 8,614 (2004) note: Iran has been using a managed floating exchange rate regime since unifying multiple exchange rates in March 2002
Swiss francs (CHF) per US dollar - 1.0774 (2008 est.), 1.1973 (2007), 1.2539 (2006), 1.2452 (2005), 1.2435 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
2.500%
1.000%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
2
6
Location
Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan
Central Europe, east of France, north of Italy
Area
1,648,195 km sq
41,277 km sq
Coastline
2,440 km
0 km
Climate
mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast
temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy winters; cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers
