8,8 No ticket to ride 74,000 The only way is up – at least as far as Switzerland’s population is concerned. In 2022, the number of people living in the country increased by almost 74,000 to 8.8 million. The growth applies to all cantons led by Schaffhausen and Fribourg, with Jura having the fewest new arrivals. 230,000 Even in a rich country like Switzerland, there are people who live below the poverty line. Surprisingly, many of them fail to collect their state benefits. These include 230,000 pensioners. According to a study by the Zurich University of Applied Sciences, fear, shame, a lack of knowledge, and too much bureaucracy are some of the reasons why people forgo their benefits. 27 The driving factor behind poverty in Switzerland? High living costs. In cost-of-living terms, statisticians in the UK have calculated that £1,000 – or around 1,200 Swiss francs – will last one person only 27 days in Switzerland. The same amount will last you 33 days in Norway, 38 in Japan, 42 in Austria and 44 in France. However, you only need to work for five days in Switzerland to earn this amount. (Source: money.co.uk) -8.5 However, only around 82,000 babys were born in Switzerland in 2022 – some 8.5 per cent fewer than in the previous year. This is a “historic low”, say statisticians, given that births in 2021 were already at a low level. The total fertility rate (the average number of children born to a female over their lifetime) has fallen to 1.38. Discounting immigration, a rate of 2.1 is needed for the population to remain stable. (Source: Federal Statistical Office, FSO) 60,000,000 Public transport is expensive in Switzerland, which makes it tempting to ride without a valid ticket. Because the phenomenon is so widespread, public transport operators set up a joint national register for fare dodgers in 2019, which shows that fare evasion is becoming more common. The public transport sector lost out on around 60 million francs in 2022 as a result. This is why repeat offenders will now have to pay a successively higher fine each time they are caught without a ticket. (Source: Alliance Swiss Pass) FIGURES COMPILED BY MARC LETTAU “Swiss Review”, the magazine for the Swiss Abroad, is in its 49th year of publication and is published six times a year in German, French, English and Spanish in 13 regional editions. It has a total circulation of 431,000, including 253,000 electronic copies. “Swiss Review”’s regional news is published four times a year. The ordering parties are fully responsible for the content of advertisements and promotional inserts. This content does not necessarily represent the opinion of either the editorial office or the publisher. All Swiss Abroad who are registered with a Swiss representation receive the magazine free of charge. Anyone else can subscribe for an annual fee (Switzerland: CHF 30/Abroad: CHF 50). ONLINE EDITION www.revue.ch EDITORS Marc Lettau, Editor-in-Chief (MUL) Stéphane Herzog (SH) Theodora Peter (TP) Susanne Wenger (SWE) Paolo Bezzola (PB, FDFA representative) FDFA OFFICIAL COMMUNICATIONS The editorial responsibility for the “Notes from the Federal Palace” section is assumed by the Consular Directorate, Innovation and Partnerships, Effinger- strasse 27, 3003 Berne, Switzerland. kdip@eda.admin.ch | www.eda.admin.ch EDITORIAL ASSISTANT Nema Bliggenstorfer (NB) TRANSLATION SwissGlobal Language Services AG, Baden LAYOUT Joseph Haas, Zurich PRINT Vogt-Schild Druck AG, Derendingen PUBLISHER The “Swiss Review” is published by the Organisation of the Swiss Abroad (OSA). The postal address of the publisher, the editorial office and advertising department is: Organisation of the Swiss Abroad, Alpenstrasse 26, 3006 Berne. revue@swisscommunity.org Phone: +41 31 356 61 10 Bank details: CH97 0079 0016 1294 4609 8 / KBBECH22 COPY DEADLINE FOR THIS EDITION 30 June 2023 CHANGES OF ADDRESS Please advise your local embassy or consulate. The editorial team cannot access your address and administrative data. Thank you. Imprint Swiss Review / August 2023 / No.4 25 Switzerland in figures
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