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)

Ballerinas perform during an ice-cream factory promotional event at an observation floor of the Moscow International Business Centre, also known as “Moskva-City”, in Moscow, Russia October 25, 2018. (Photo by Shamil Zhumatov/Reuters)

In this handout image provided by Parks Australia, thousands of red crabs are seen walking in a drain on November 23, 2021 in Christmas Island. The annual migration of red crabs begins with first rains of the wet season on Christmas Island, usually around October or November. Millions of the red crabs make their way across the island to the ocean to mate and spawn. (Photo by Parks Australia via Getty Images)

Bolivian sеx workers sit during a Reuters interview before the countrywide, two-week mandatory quarantine to combat the spread of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), decreed by Bolivia's interim government, in El Alto outskirts of La Paz, Bolivia on March 20, 2020. (Photo by Monica Machicao/Reuters)

An employee in protective gears sprays disinfectant at the main exhibition tank at the Sea World at Jaya Ancol Dream Park as it is closed for public in the wake of coronavirus outbreak in Jakarta, Indonesia, Saturday, March 14, 2020. Indonesia's capital city announced a lockdown of all tourist destinations and entertainment spots as well as the closing all of its public schools for the next 14 days amid the global outbreak. For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms. For some it can cause more severe illness. (Photo by Dita Alangkara/AP Photo)

A view of a Gucci's advertisement campaign selected for an exhibition to celebrate creative vision of a creative director Alessandro Michele at Gucci Garden Archetypes, in Florence, Italy, Thursday, May 13, 2021. (Photo by Antonio Calanni/AP Photo)

Dancers from Malaysia's pavilion perform wearing face shields due to the coronavirus at Expo 2020, in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, October 3, 2021. (Photo by Jon Gambrell/AP Photo)

A young macaque perches on a pole, observing nearby tourists while eating some seeds in Jigokudani Yaen-koen wild macaque monkey park on February 16, 2015 in Yamanouchi, Nagano, Japan. (Photo by Manuel Romaris/Getty Images)