bank created by the Arab League summit conference in Algiers, in November 1973, to finance development projects in Africa. In 1975 ABEDA began operating by supplying African countries with technical assistance. All members of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) are eligible as recipients, except those countries belonging to the Arab League. ABEDA includes all members of the Arab League except Comoros, Djibouti, Somalia, and Yemen. (Egypt's membership was suspended 1979–89.) The objectives of ABEDA are threefold: to assist African countries with large balance-of-payment deficits, to provide technical assistance, and to sponsor Arab investments in Africa through investment guarantees. The headquarters are located in Khartoum, The Sudan.