Geneva is the capital of the canton of the same name, and is Switzerland's second biggest city. It lies in the south-west, near the border with France, at the western end of Lake Geneva, where the Rhone flows out of the lake.

A number of international organisations have their headquarters in Geneva. These include the European headquarters of the UN, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), the World Health Organisation (WHO), the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the UN High Commission for Refugees and CERN, the European Organisation for Nuclear Research.

It is also the site of the headquarters of the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Geneva is also well known for its watches. The Geneva Seal, or Poinçon de Genève, is a quality hallmark which is only granted to a select range of luxury watches according to strict criteria. Each year Geneva holds an exclusive fair, the International Salon for Prestige Watchmaking.

Geneva is also known for its car fair, held every year in March. Other fairs held in Geneva include the Inventors' Fair and the Book Fair.

The city has Switzerland's second largest airport, Cointrin. It is linked directly by rail with Paris, and also with Milan, via the Rhone valley. Within Switzerland it has direct trains to Lake Constance at the opposite end of the country via Bern and Zurich.

In international surveys ranking cities of the world for their quality of life, Geneva usually figures very near the top.

* Canton: Geneva
* Area: 158.60 km2 (61.24 square miles)
* Population (city): 178,722 (2005)
* Population (agglomeration): 470,000 (census 2000)
* Height above sea level: 375 m (1230 ft)
* Language: French

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Part or or all of this text stems from the original article at: http://www.swissworld.org