Jessica Biel will take part in a charity expedition to the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa next January.

The 27-year-old actress hopes to raise awareness to the need for communities to have access to clean water worldwide.

In a statement, Biel said the issue was a “basic human necessity that needs to be addressed now”.

The Blade star will be joined on the 19,000ft expedition by actress Isabel Lucas and hip-hop star Lupe Fiasco.

Other celebrities are also expected to take part in The Summit on the Summit, according to organiser Kenna, whose father suffered from waterborne diseases as a child in Ethiopia.

Among them could be Biel's boyfriend Justin Timberlake, who told GQ magazine earlier this year that he was preparing to scale a major mountain.

A rep for the singer declined to comment when approached by the Associated Press.

Justin and Jessica