The IMF chimes in prior to the London G20 Summit

The IMF priming for the G20...

The IMF warned on Tuesday the world was gripped by a ''Great
Recession'' that could throw millions back into poverty and spark
civil unrest, as the United States appealed for joint action by
nations against the crisis.

''The global financial crisis, that might now be called the great
recession, provides a sobering backdrop to our conference,'' IMF
Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn told delegates at an
anti-crisis meeting in Tanzania.

''The IMF expects global growth to slow below zero this year, the
worst performance in most of our lifetimes,'' he said, urging wealthy
Western countries to maintain financial support for low-income
nations.

The IMF director also said there was now ''a real risk that millions
will be thrown back into poverty'' across the African continent and
that the economic crisis raised ''the threat of civil unrest, perhaps
even a war''.

The worldwide recession also raised fears in Europe of a sharp erosion
in public health as financially strapped patients are forced to defer
care.