Swiss Cities 1st in Quality of Life among 215 Cities Worldwide
In Mercer Human Resources‘ 2004 Overall Quality of Life Survey among 215 cities, Zurich and Geneva tie for 1st place, while Berne ranks 5th along with Auckland, Copenhagen, Frankfurt, and Sydney.
According to the report, Geneva moved to 1st place, pushing Vancouver, BC, to 3rd largely because of its schools, where standards of education, both public and private, are now rated among the best in the world.
Quality of life and a strong educational system are among the many reasons why companies select Switzerland as a base for operations in Europe. Despite difficult economic circumstances in the global economy, 42 big new or expanded North American investment projects landed in Switzerland in 2003.
The Mercer study is based on an evaluation of 39 quality of life criteria including political, social, economic and environmental factors, personal safety and health, education, transport and other public services.
Cities are ranked against New York as the base city, which has a rating of 100. The highest rated American cities are Honolulu and San Francisco at place number 24.
EU Report Ranks Switzerland as a Top Place to do Business
Switzerland will continue to rank as an attractive place to do business through 2005 according to a 5-year forecast by the Economist Intelligence Unit. In the global listing, the country ranks 3rd in Europe, only marginally after the Netherlands and U.K. with a qualitative grade of „very good,“ which is the highest classification given.
Switzerland is the only country that advanced three notches from the previous cycle. Switzerland’s attraction as an international business center is also borne out by the most recent Swiss National Bank statistics. Last year, foreign direct investments reached a record Sfr 29.1 billion (US $17.5 billion), up Sfr 12 billion from 1999. At Sfr 20.3 billion (US $12.2 billion), Canada and the United States accounted for the bulk of the new investments.
The country’s impressive ranking is also confirmed by a third source, the Ernst & Young Investment Monitor, in which Switzerland figured prominently in 3 of 5 investment categories during 2000. These consist of logistics centers, headquarters, call centers, research and development facilities and sales and marketing offices.
446 New Big Investment Projects 2003 in Switzerland
North American firms accounted for 42 of these new investment projects. While the US is still the single largest investor in Switzerland, the overall total of 400 plus firms from outside of Canada and the US is further proof that the investment footprint in the nation is widening and increasingly also coming from Europe and the Far East. This growing diversification further contributes to the already international status of the nation and labor force, and underpins Switzerland’s position as a leading gateway to today’s enlarged Europe.
Given the growing global competition, only countries with solid basic economic conditions and targeted information for potential investors can hold their own. Switzerland stands as the 3d most „globalized“ nation.
Bern, Geneva, and Zurich are three of the top ten cities worldwide in which to live and work according to a recent Mercer Study. „These resound very positively with foreign direct investors seeking to establish a physical production, research and development, sales and marketing or headquarters presence in Europe.“