Swiss Army expects 20 per cent of recruits to abandon military service

Army Recruits training in canton Ticino Keystone Archive

The Swiss army expects that the number of recruits who will abandon their military service in 2001 will be one in four compared to last year's one in five. The army estimates that 20 per cent of recruits will not finish their training in 2001, a figure the army wants to halve.

The figures were revealed by the Swiss newspaper, Sonntagsblick, and confirmed by the spokesman for Swiss Army Generals, Felix Endrich.

Recruits who were deemed unfit for military service last year cost the armed forces an estimated SFr10 million, or a loss of 90,000 days of service. Over half of all recruits sent home consumed alcohol or drugs excessively, or were suffering from anxiety or insomnia.

To reverse the overall trend, the Swiss army is introducing a new recruitment concept this autumn, which will cost SFr42 million, ($ 24.5 million), twice its actual cost. As a result, recruits will have to undergo several days of testing in six different centres.

Three locations for these centres have already been decided, namely Lausanne, Mels and Rüti.

The new recruitment method, which should be ready by 2004, is aimed at obtaining a better idea of the recruits’ capabilities. Some psychological testing is also planned.

swissinfo with agencies