LUSAKA (Reuters) – Zambia has told the International Monetary Fund (IMF) it will gradually cut subsidies amounting to about $1 billion as part of an economic recovery plan, Finance Minister Felix Mutati said.

Africa’s second-biggest copper producer will also boost funds for social welfare, Mutati said during talks with IMF officials at the lender’s annual meetings, a finance ministry statement released late on Sunday said.

The statement did not specify which subsidies would be trimmed. Zambian government subsidies include about $600 million annually for electricity and fuel.

(Reporting by Chris Mfula; Editing by Ed Stoddard and Joe Brock)