Children raised on or staying at farms are subject to a risk of death related to work and non-work fatalities, with tractors contributing to a large proportion of these deaths. Thus, our newly published study that examines fatal tractor accidents in Icelandic agriculture from 1918 to 2024 might interest you. In addition to an analysis of quantitative data on all tractor-related fatalities in Iceland in the period, it includes children’s narratives about tractors, and a descriuption of related legislation on the minimum age for driving a tractor. Over half of the 81 registered accidents involved children—primarily boys—with 75% occurring between 1958 and 1988, when no minimum age for off-road tractor driving existed. The incidence of deaths was more than four times higher among those aged 12–17 and 1.5 times higher for younger children aged less than 12 compared to adults when there was no minimum age for tractor driving off-road. The arguments against minimum age requirements for off-road driving in Iceland included the need for child labour, children’s superior driving skills, and the denial that children were more often victims than adults. Of interest is that in some settings there is still no miniumum age for driving a tractor if you work on a family farm. What is the situation in your country? What is the minimum age for driving a tractor in your area?
You find the whole story here: https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/21/10/1295<https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u...
Regards,
Geir Gunnlaugsson, MD, PhD, MPH
CHIFA profile:
Geir Gunnlaugsson is Professor of Global Health at the University of Iceland. He graduated with a medical diploma (MD) from this university with post-graduate training in paediatrics (PhD) and public health (MPH) at the Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden. Research and publications on, e.g., breastfeeding, infant and child mortality, child development and abuse, measles, cholera, and health systems in Iceland, Guinea-Bissau and Malawi. He was the General Secretary of ISSOP International Society for Social Pediatrics and Child Health in 2009-2017, and currently chairman of Africa 20:20 an Icelandic NGO to promote interest and knowledge on sub-Saharan Africa.