GENEVA (AP) — The European Union has announced 474 million euros ($535 million) in financial aid for Afghanistan as senior diplomats gathered for a U.N.-backed conference focusing on development, peace and security in the country.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani appealed for investment as the two-day conference opened Tuesday with top diplomats from countries like Germany, Russia and Iran among dozens of diplomats and officials to speak a day later.

The meeting aims to take stock of progress of the Afghan government in using billions of dollars in foreign aid for education, health care, humanitarian support and needs since 2016.

The European Commission said the new funding would go toward reforms in the public sector, health, justice and migration and displacement issues, with 311 million euros aimed for supporting Afghanistan's "reform agenda."

This story has corrected the figure amount in the first paragraph to million, not billion.