Many of you may remember the recent Fraser Institute Report that came out that claimed that a family could raise a child for only $4,000 a year.

Many others have already written brilliant responses as to why the numbers used in the Report are incomplete and why, for many families, the situtations used in the report are not realistic.

This includes a great piece for Huffington Post by MP Niki Ashton. And the equally fantastic post by Kate McInturff for Rabble, both worth a moment of your time if you have not read them.

Click on the image for the full-size version.

While the Fraser Institute Report left out costs associated with childcare and housing (both of which we know from our work across Canada with low income women are required, not a luxury), the Report also failed to take into consideration single parent families.

Eighty percent of all lone-parent families are headed by women. This adds up to over 1 million families, and they are among the poorest in the country.

21% of all single mothers and their children live in poverty (Note: only 7% of single parent fathers and their children live in poverty)

Single moms have a net worth of only about $17,000, while single dads have about $80,000.

And those are not the only facts about women and children living in poverty.

In our recent issue of SHE Magazine, our bi-annual Canadian Women’s Foundation magazine, we took a look at some of the other items that low income mothers are often unable to afford when it comes to day-to-day activities for their children