Christian author and speaker Joyce Meyer is preparing for a humanitarian trip to Ethiopia this month.

Meyer, and her husband Dave, will join a missions team from Hand of Hope, a humanitarian and disaster relief charity within Joyce Meyer Ministries (JMM) headed up by eldest son David Meyer.

Joyce Meyer is due to visit Hand of Hope outreaches in Ethiopia, including feeding programmes supporting hundreds of families and the new Hand of Hope Medical Clinic launched earlier this year, which includes four outposts in remote areas.

Meyer will also stop off at Hand of Hope Women's Homes, which care for young women and girls rescued from prostitution, providing them with food, medical care, counselling, education, and job and spiritual training.

Joyce Meyer Ministries provides millions of meals to the hungry every year, supports and operates major medical outreaches in remote areas, operates and fully supports 46 children's homes worldwide, and provides other humanitarian and disaster relief around the world.

The Meyers visit Ethiopia as it struggles to cope with severe drought, rising food prices, a shortage of medical supplies, and increasing cost of fuel. In May, UNICEF Ethiopia warned that as many 126,000 children in the country were at risk of severe malnutrition.

David Meyer, Chief Executive of Hand of Hope, said earlier, "We know that our friends and our partners are concerned about the welfare of children around the world.

"As a ministry, we are committed to feeding the hungry, providing medicine to the ill and hope to women and children who need shelter."