Updated March 07, 2014.
Switzerland ranks first in the annual "Global Competitiveness Report" out of 148 countries measured by the World Economic Forum.
(For reference, the top 5 are Switzerland, Singapore, Finland, Germany, and the United States).
The World Economic Forum credits Switzerland with the highest competitiveness ranking largely because of its innovation strength.
Switzerland is home to many highly-regarded scientific research institutes, and has an efficient labor market.
The business sector provides top notch on-the-job training, which makes it a powerhouse in productivity.
Unlike some of the emerging countries trying to gain momentum in the life sciences world stage, such as Mexico and India, Switzerland's government is among the world's most transparent. The country's citizens have exceptional influence, and this fair and just economic climate makes it a very attractive place for multinational corporations to invest because they know their intellectual property, and workers' conditions, will be protected.
Switzerland's Innovation Strength At A Glance (Source: The World Bank)
- 6 researchers in science, per thousand total employment (By comparison, Colombia has 0.4, Mexico has 1.0, Brazil has 1.4, Germany has 8.1, and France has 8.9)
- 21.6% of Switzerland's graduate students are in science, engineering, manufacturing, and construction
- Switzerland spends the equivalent of 3% of its Gross Domestic Product on research and development
- Residents have filed 1,622 patent applications
Swiss Life Science Clusters
Switzerland has seen three distinct life science clusters emerge within its borders.
- Basel (nicknamed "Bio Valley)
- The Greater Zurich Area
- Lake Geneva (nicknamed the "Bio Alps")
A "cluster" is a phenomenon in the life sciences sector of every country that has them where university, corporate, and medical center research institutions build their laboratories within a few miles of each other. Often, they are in the same building or adjacent buildings to each other and thus within walking distance.
This phenomenon of clustering happens because research believe in collaboration to advance the speed of their discoveries. This culture permeates from the bench scientist all the way to the top directors of the corporations, universities, and medical centers who employ them.
Basel (Bio Valley)
Incredibly, 40 percent of the world's pharmaceutical companies are located in Basel's "Bio Valley". Again, the concept of clustering seems to matter here as well. Basel benefits from its close proximity to the German and French borders, thus making it an easy and accessible location for Swiss, German, and French researchers alike.
- Over 600 pharmaceutical and medical technology companies
- 10 universities
- 15,000 scientists
- Many technology and life sciences parks
Major employers include Novartis, Roche, and BASF.
The Greater Zurich Area
The primary life science market influencers in Zurich are the University of Zurich and the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich. These two organizations generate many start-up companies and small spin-offs each year.
Major employers include Bayer AG and Novo Nordisk Pharma AG, generating an annual revenue of CHF 40 Billion (USD 41.7 billion). There are over 21,000 employees in the life sciences in the Greater Zurich Area alone.
Lake Geneva (Bio Alps)
Home to more than 570 multinational companies, and a vast network of research and academic institutions, the Bio Alps has an infrastructure that most of the world envies.
The area is home to many life science parks including The Life Science Park offered by one of the world's most prestigious universities, the Ecole Polytechnique Federal de Lausanne. And of particular interest, this is where the CERN project is located. CERN, the European Organization for Nuclear Research, has been used as a notable foundation of many fiction, science-fiction, and thriller novels.