The UK will not stand on the sidelines while millions suffer from this entirely preventable and treatable disease. It's time for the international community to come together yet again and keep up their commitments. We need another decade of action against malaria. The prize could be another million lives saved.

Bringing about change is a long-term task, in which girls' education, economic opportunities and women's representation and rights are all key. This is why the UK's programmes and the benefits they bring to Afghan women and girls will continue long after British troops come home in 2014.

The coalition government has provided nearly £40 million of ring-fenced funding for specialist domestic and sexual violence services, and national helplines. We've invested in changing attitudes and behaviours. You may have seen the UK television adverts we've launched to tackle rape and relationship abuse amongst teenagers. We've reformed our legislation, introducing two new stalking offences to better protect victims and better support the police and prosecutors who bring about justice. But we can and must do more.

Change is possible, and female genital cutting can end within our lifetime.

If anyone sees a female Lib Dem MP can they let us know? Given that there are only seven women out of the 56 Lib Dems in the Commons, it is rather conspicuous that only one of them has spoken publicly about the allegations against Lord Rennard.

Today I met a future doctor, accountant and engineer. They were all 13 year old girls. The aspirations of these Ethiopian girls is heartening. The engineer says she wants to train to help "build up her country". I wouldn't bet against her doing just that.

Mobile money means more small, safe, cashless transactions can happen - urban workers can send money back to rural homes; small shops and stalls can trade more and grow their business.

Why in this present day does female genital mutilation or cutting (FGC) continue? For far too long it has been an issue that people have tended to shy away from, and in my view, neglected. But we can no longer shy away.

We've come a long way in the fight to tackle HIV in developing countries - UK aid is helping to prevent 500,000 new HIV infections by 2015 in women through a range of prevention programmes. But there's still the hurdle of reaching people who are marginalised from the services they need and most at risk of infection.

Yesterday, on the final day of my visit to Zambia, the Minister of Gender and I launched 16 Days of Activism against gender-based violence in Zambia. This is a UN worldwide initiative, running from the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on 25 November to Human Rights Day on 10 December.

60% of Zambians live on less than $1 a day. In rural Zambia, 57% live in extreme poverty and are unable to meet basic food needs. Through the social protection programme, 99,000 recipients (84% of them women) will be reached by 2015 - over 60% supported by UK aid.

Physical and sexual abuse of women is a global scourge, that transcends borders. From the UK, where one in four women will be the victim of domestic abuse in their lifetime to Zambia, where 47% of women have suffered gender-based violence.

Essentials first published a Real Women special issue in 2010, marking the first time it had not used models or celebrities on its cover. The positive feedback prompted editor Jules Barton-Breck to make the decision to continue to use real women on its covers throughout 2011 and into 2012, reinforcing its tagline of "No models, no celebs - just you!"

Lib Dem equalities minister Lynne Featherstone, who is in charge of government plans to introduce gay marriage, has received a special supportive gift...