By: Alexander Jackson, originally posted on Baltimore Business Journal

A Johns Hopkins University affiliate has been awarded $1.6 million from the GE Foundation to support the development of lifesaving technologies for women and children in developing countries.

Jhpiego, a Baltimore-based international nonprofit, will use the money to create new products through its Innovation Development Program. Centered on maternal and child health, the program focuses on early-stage innovation and then, for selected projects, field-testing and product introduction.

The grant provides yet another injection of cash for Jhpiego, which has seen an influx of funding this year. In October, the nonprofit was tapped for a $24.9 million effort to develop low-cost technologies by the U.S. Agency for International Development. Jhpiego was also picked to lead a $100 million U.S.-funded effort to bring health care to poor communities in central and eastern Kenya in January.

The GE Foundation’s grant will also support the Global Health Innovation Fellowship Program, a collaboration between Jhpiego and Hopkins’ Center for Bioengineering Innovation and Design that pairs students with professionals concerned with global health technology innovation.

Youseph Yazdi, executive director of Hopkins’ Center for Bioengineering Innovation and Design, said the grant will allow the school’s students to increase their impact “on some of the toughest health challenges around the world.”

Flickr photo by: DFID - UK Department for International Development