Owners and their dogs take part in “HK Doggie Dash 2018”, an event held to raise money for for abandoned and surrendered dogs in Hong Kong on April 15, 2018. Dozens of pugs and dachshunds compensated for their modest speed with peppy spirits at Hong Kong’s inaugural “doggie dash” on April 15 that raised funds and awareness for the city’s abandoned and rescued dogs. (Photo by Isaac Lawrence/AFP Photo)

Two women jump from a platform over the water at La Concha beach during a hot summer day in the basque city of San Sebastian, northern Spain, Friday, August 3, 2018. Hot air from Africa is bringing a heat wave to Europe, prompting health warnings about Sahara Desert dust and exceptionally high temperatures that could peak at 47 degrees Celsius (117 Fahrenheit) in Spain and Portugal. (Photo by Alvaro Barrientos/AP Photo)

As the world marks the International Day of the Girl Child, women's rights activists point to progress on a wide array of issues but say more needs to be done to protect girls from child marriage, sexual assault and other forms of exploitation. Here is a selection of pictures showing the daily lives of girls across the globe, all taken by female Associated Press photojournalists. Here: In this December 14, 2015, file photo, a young clown rides in the back of a car following a procession to the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. Hundreds belonging to various clown associations made their annual pilgrimage to the Basilica to pay their respects to the Virgin of Guadalupe, Mexico's patron saint. (Photo by Rebecca Blackwell/AP Photo)

Picture shows a mural painting in Ferrol, on September 2, 2018, during the annual street art festival “Meninas de Canido” set up in 2008 to breathe new life in a dying neighborhood. Angry at the announced death of his neighborhood, Canido, in Ferrol, Eduardo Hermida painted his version of Velazquez's “Meninas” on a wall. An act of protest that gave birth to a festival and gave new colors to this city of Galicia. (Photo by Miguel Riopa/AFP Photo)

Runner-up. “The City of London, looking towards the Royal Exchange and the Bank of England. The ever-changing London skyline provides many excellent opportunities for cityscape photography, none more exciting than the ebb and flow of traffic at night”. (Photo by Mark Caldon/The Guardian)

An Okinawan woman in a kimono checks her phone before attending a ceremony on Coming of Age Day on January 13, 2019 in Okinawa City, Japan. Coming of Age Day is a Japanese holiday held every January to celebrate people who have reached 20 – the official age of adulthood in Japan. Despite being a solemn affair in some parts of Japan, Okinawans have become known for their flamboyant and occasionally boisterous celebrations. (Photo by Carl Court/Getty Images)

People walk down a makeshift modeling runway as they take a break from marching during the Brooklyn Liberation's Protect Trans Youth event on June 13, 2021 in the Brooklyn borough in New York City. Brooklyn Liberation organized a march and rally as an emergency action response to legislation to restrict trans rights across 34 states. According to the Human Rights Campaign, there have been over 250 bills introduced in state legislatures aimed at the LGBTQ community in 2021. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

Aerial view of a giant sinkhole on June 09, 2021 in Santa María Zacatepec, Mexico. The giant sinkhole is located 20 kilometers northwest from the capital city Puebla, the hole now measures 110 meters across its widest point, covering around 11,000 square meters and damaging a house built near the place where it appeared. Farmers of the surroundings have been affected since they are not allowed to enter their fields due to the warning perimeter set up by the authorities. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images)