ANSWERED on Mon 18 Jun 2007 - 5:55 am UTC by nancy
Question: Research on the NGO sector -- Switzerland
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Asked by techsoupglobal on Fri 15 Jun 2007 - 6:31 pm UTC:
Need initial high-level data on the NGO sector. Source of data is important. For example, the number of NGOs is from 2005 and from the government agency authority in that country. NGO data ----------------------------------------------------------- What is the total number of operating NGOs in the country? (For example: see http://www.civilsoc.org/ for an answer to Hungary) What percentage of NGOs are computer enabled? What percentage of (NGO?) population is connected to the internet? What are the top 10 types of NGO’s (from activity codes)? Who are the Top 10 ICT NGO’s? NGO registration authority --------------------------------------------------------------- Is there an online database of certified NGOs based upon the country’s NGO registration authority? (e.g. Guidestar in the US) Language ------------------------------------- What is the primary language of business / commerce in the NGO sector in that country? What is the primary language used online? What is the character set is used online? If multiple languages are used within various regions of the country, what are the legal requirements regarding language usage in business community? Government policies --------------------------------------- Are there any known government or country efforts or movements around ICT? Examples might include telecentres, adoption of open source, eGovernance etc. Are there any regional or geopolitical affiliations with neighboring countries? (e.g. EU) Are there any political or cultural reasons that would prevent this country from serving another? Are there any known government agencies, government initiatives, umbrella or association organizations, that serve the country’s NGO market or their ICT needs? Country / population data -------------------------- Population size What percentage of general population is computer enabled? What percentage of the general population is internet enabled? Regional differences -------------------------- Any regional differences by language? Any regional differences by ethnicity? Any significant economic differences by region? Any differences in computer or internet access by region? Miscellaneous ---------------------------- What’s the best price that an NGO would pay for Microsoft Office 2007? --------------------------- I can offer up links to some sites that may be helpful for NGO statistics, but you'll also have to dig into country census data, etc. that may not be covered by these sites. CIA's World Factbook, country break-down including population stats, gov structure, currency, communications (Internet) stats https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html Internet World Stats, provides internet usage/penetration, including by country http://www.internetworldstats.com World Information, very brief, general facts, including official language, local currency http://www.worldinformation.com/worldroot/start.asp Council on Foundations: http://www.usig.org/countryinfo.asp - data include types of orgs, local & tax laws Johns Hopkins CCSS: http://www.jhu.edu/~ccss/Publications/cnpwork/index.html - papers from Johns Hopkins on governing law (but not often market size). Publications by country: http://www.jhu.edu/~cnp/research/country.html ICNL: http://www.icnl.org/knowledge/library/index.php - laws governing NGOs Asian Development Bank: http://www.adb.org/NGOs/documentation.asp - government policy towards some of our countries in Asia Asia Pacific Philanthropy Consortium: http://www.asianphilanthropy.org/countries/index.html - provides "third sector" overview, including market size (in narrative form; some links don't work) Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, OECD Statistics Portal Home: http://www.oecd.org/statsportal/0,3352,en_2825_293564_1_1_1_1_1,00.html Country Web Pages: http://www.oecd.org/countrieslist/0,3025,en_33873108_33844430_1_1_1_1_1,00.html Economist e-Readiness Ranking http://globaltechforum.eiu.com/index.asp?layout=rich_story&doc_id=5768 NGO classification codes referred to are called NTEE codes (National Taxonomy of Exempt Entities), they can be found here -- http://nccsdataweb.urban.org/PubApps/nteeSearch.php?gQry=all&codeType=NTEE Directory of Development Organizations http://www.devdir.org Wikipedia is good for general descriptive information and often leads to more detailed, country-specific references http://wikipedia.org Kwintessential for language, culture, customs http://www.kwintessential.co.uk
Answer by Researcher nancy on Mon 18 Jun 2007 - 5:55 am UTC:
Switzerland currently hosts 23 international NGOs and has about 200 domestically based NGOs. From the Swiss government's "Welcome Center," the Centre d'Accueil - Genève Internationale (CAGI): http://www.cagi.ch/en/ONG.htm "Non Governmental Organizations "Today Geneva hosts 23 international organisations, 200 missions and permanent representatives." You'll see hyperlinked categories that will bring up all NGOs in Switzerland. ----------------------------------- NGO Tax Laws & Swiss Civil Code From the Centre d'Accueil - Genève Internationale (CAGI): http://www.cagi.ch/en/Statut_juridique_ONG.htm "2. Establishment In Switzerland, an NGO can be freely established under the Swiss Civil Code, either in the form of an association, pursuant to Articles 60 et seq., or of a foundation pursuant to Articles 80 et seq. of the Swiss Civil Code. No specific legal provisions apply to international associations or foundations." That hyperlink for the Swiss code site brings up: http://www.admin.ch/ch/i/rs/210/indexni1.html However, I can't bring up the English version. I couldn't find a translation online, but you can contact Switzerland's NGO Liaison Officer: http://www.cagi.ch/en/Statut_juridique_ONG.htm "NGOs have their own tax status: please contact the NGO Liaison Officer of the Chancellery of the State of Geneva." (That link text will bring up an e-mail address.) The Swiss American Chamber of Commerce sells English translations of Swiss laws: http://www.amcham.ch/publications/m_obligations.htm#swiss_property_law ------------------------------------ Regulations for Organizations The United States Agency for International Development's (USAID) 2005 NGO Sustainability Index,"Civil Society Under Threat: Common Legal Barriers and Potential Responses," by Catherine Shea and David Moore http://www.usaid.gov/locations/europe_eurasia/dem_gov/ngoindex/2005/articles.pdf Page 3: "Barriers to Registration In addition to the right to act through informal entities, the freedom of association also embraces the right to attain legal entity status and to receive all the legal protections attached to it. Whereas some European countries (e.g., the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland) require only the drawing up of an establishment act or notarial approval to be recognized as a legal entity, most countries require some kind of formal registration." ------------------------------------ NGO Contacts by Sector Contacts According to NGO Sector: http://www.cagi.ch/en/Coordonnees_ServicesONG_Organisations_internationales.htm ------------------------------------ Calculating Number of Swiss NGOs As previously noted, CAGI reports "23 international organisations, 200 missions and permanent representatives," but I'm not certain it can be properly stated that means 223 NGOs in Switzerland; or if those "200 missions" only should be counted as Swiss NGOs. This December 2004 Swiss News article, "The NGO Capital," by Tom O'Brien, reports: http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_go2010/is_200412/ai_n9737611 "Not only are 170 NGOs based in Geneva, but also 153 foreign nations have one permanent representation there..." So I believe the 200 figure from CAGI does mean *Swiss-based* NGOs. ******************************** Directories of Swiss NGOs WANGO (World Association of Non-Governmental Organizations) lists 252 NGOs: http://www.wango.org/resources.aspx?section=ngodir&sub=list®ionID=0 (If that page doesn't show Swiss NGOs, go to the menu at left and select "Switzerland" under "Country," then click "Search.") Directory of Development Organizations 2007 report for Switzerland: http://www.devdir.org/files/Switzerland.PDF ******************************* ICT Policy/Initiatives The Swiss National Science Foundation's "Swiss Priority Programme for Information and Communcation" (SPP ICS): http://www.spp-ics.snf.ch/spp_ics/cnec_2000_1.html The projects listed here appear to be ongoing. At Swiss World, see information about the government's "Innovation Policy": http://www.swissworld.org/dvd_rom/eng/education_2004/content/innovation/innovation_policy-eng.html "Examples include Swiss participation in the European space programme, participation in European Union’s wideranging 'framework' research programmes and in international environmental research efforts. "The state also encourages basic research and cooperation at the international level, for example with Russian scientists in the fields of biotechnology and nanotechnology. "A new, more commercially oriented innovation policy is now in place. It supports high-tech clusters in biotechnology, micro and nanotechnology, information technologies, and emerging technologies for environmental sectors too." See the report "Education, Research, and Technology: promoting investment in Switzerland’s excellence. Switzerland’s education, research, and technology policy between 2004 and 2007. An overview": http://www.swissworld.org/dvd_rom/eng/education_2004/content/innovation/research_tech_04-07.pdf Note: You'll see references to "cantons" in this report. Switzerland is composed of 26 cantons (or states) within the Swiss federal government. ****************************** ICT NGOs Automated System CUstoms DAta (ASYCUDA) http://www.asycuda.org/ International Telecommunication Union (ITU) http://www.itu.int/net/home/index.aspx "[Geneva-based] ITU is the leading United Nations agency for information and communication technologies. As the global focal point for governments and the private sector..." ICA Communications Committee (ICACC) http://www.coop.org/icacc/ Three technology NGOs are listed at CAGI: http://www.cagi.ch/en/ScienceTechnology_ONG.htm At WikiSpaces' Country Profiles: http://countryprofiles.wikispaces.com/Switzerland "The issue of digital inclusion has never been high on the political agenda in Switzerland, with the possible exception of the WSIS preparation phase. At the moment the challenges are: -to draft a realistic and manageable set of e-Inclusion guidelines and an action plan adapted to our circumstances -to find the right actors to implement these documents -to find political sponsorship for selected e-Inclusion topics" This confirms my impression from going through the directories that ICT is not the dominant sector in Swiss NGOs. The reference to "WSIS" in that passage is the World Summit on the Information Society: http://www.itu.int/wsis/geneva/index.html ******************************** General Population/ICT Stats Switzerland's population: 7.4 million From the Swiss Federal Statistical Office http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/en/index/themen/01.html Internet World Stats: http://www.internetworldstats.com/euro/ch.htm "Internet Usage Statistics: 4,944,438 Internet users as of Jan./06, 66.0% of the population, according to Nielsen NetRatings." CIA World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sz.html "Telephones - main lines in use: 5.123 million (2005) Telephones - mobile cellular: 6.847 million (2005)" Global Tech Forum "Overview of e-commerce in Switzerland," November 2006: http://globaltechforum.eiu.com/index.asp?layout=rich_story&doc_id=9612&country_id=CH&title=Overview+of+e%2Dcommerce+in+Switzerland&channelid=4&categoryid=29&country=Switzerland Also see "The Economist Intelligence Unit 2005 e-readiness rankings": http://www.ebusinessforum.com/index.asp?doc_id=367&layout=rich_story "Broadband development has also helped Switzerland rise to 4th place..." ************************************ Languages Numerous languages are spoken in Switzerland, but the three official languages are German, French, and Italian. CIA World Factbook https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sz.html "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 0.5%, other 2.8% (2000 census) "note: German, French, Italian, and Romansch are all national languages, but only the first three are official languages" Swiss Federal Statistical Office http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/en/index/themen/01/05.html --------------------------------------- Languages By Region See language breakouts by region at Ethnologue: http://www.ethnologue.com/show_country.asp?name=Switzerland Re: the official online language, Swiss government sites I've visited all have options for French, German, and Italian. --------------------------------- Swiss Keyboard At Answers.com: http://www.answers.com/topic/keyboard-layout Scroll down to the header "Swiss German, Swiss French, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg" to view the keyboard layout. ------------------------------------ Religion & Ethnicity: Overview CIA World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sz.html "Nationality: noun: Swiss (singular and plural) adjective: Swiss "Ethnic groups: German 65%, French 18%, Italian 10%, Romansch 1%, other 6% "Religions: 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)" ------------------------------------ Switzerland by Region: Overview Swiss Federal Statistical Office Regional Map: http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/en/index/regionen/regionalportraets.html Cantons of Switzerland - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cantons_of_Switzerland "The twenty-six cantons of Switzerland are the states of the federal state of Switzerland. Historically each canton in the then-confederation was a sovereign state, with its own borders, army, and currency until the current federal structure was established in 1848. "Each canton has its own constitution, legislature, government and courts. Most of the cantons' legislatures are unicameral parliaments... "All tasks that do not explicitly fall within the Confederation according to the Swiss Constitution are matters of the cantons" ******************************* Economy - Overview CIA World Factbook: https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sz.html "Agriculture - products: grains, fruits, vegetables; meat, eggs "Industries: machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments, tourism, banking, and insurance" ------------------------------------ Topics & Issues by Region A myriad of topics can be reviewed according to region at the Swiss Federal Statistical Office: http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/en/index/regionen/thematische_karten/maps.html Then, pick a topic at menu at left, such as "Industry and services." Some categories have subtopics. For instance, clicking "Regional Disparities" in the menu at left brings up the subcategories "Public services" and "Sociocultural disparities." The two respective maps are: http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/en/index/regionen/thematische_karten/maps/rd/sozio.html http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/en/index/regionen/thematische_karten/maps/rd/dienst/raeumliche_verteilung/gesundheit.html ------------------------------------ Business Etiquette "Switzerland," by Paul Dray, at ExecutivePlanet.com: http://www.executiveplanet.com/index.php?title=Switzerland ------------------------------------ Software As for what NGOs are willing to pay for MS Office 2007, please see my Answer for "NGOs in Australia." Again, I mostly found references to free software. "Free Software Foundation Europe"(FSFE) at Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_Software_Foundation_Europe covers some key issues, such as: "Software patents in Europe ...Software patents are considered by the FSFE to be a menace to society and economy and FSF Europe is actively involved in the resistance to such plans." At FSFE's site: http://www.fsf-europe.org/associates/associates.ca.html See "Wilhelm Tux -- Campaign for Free Software. Swiss non-profit for Free Software." Here's an English version of the Wilheim Tux site: http://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=de&u=http://www.wilhelmtux.ch/&sa=X&oi=translate&resnum=1&ct=result&prev=/search%3Fq%3DWilhelm%2BTux%26hl%3Den%26sa%3DX If you have any questions, please ask for Clarification. Best regards, Nancy
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Comment by User fp on Sun 17 Jun 2007 - 10:37 am UTC: