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)

A man carries an injured woman in a site hit by what activists said were airstrikes carried out by the Russian air force in the rebel-controlled area of Maaret al-Numan town in Idlib province, Syria January 9, 2016. At least 70 people died in what activists said where four vacuum bombs dropped by the Russian air force in the town of Maaret al-Numan; other air strikes where also carried out in the towns of Saraqib, Khan Sheikhoun and Maar Dabseh, in Idlib. (Photo by Khalil Ashawi/Reuters)

(L-R) Diana, Renata, Marina, Sveta and Anastasia of the Showtime reality show “Russian Dolls” visit “The Chaunce Hayden Show” on GFQ Network at Sapphire New York on August 17, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images)

This graceful husky appears to be smarter than your average dog having apparently mastered the art of walking on water. The soft-footed canine was photographed while making its way across a lake in northern Russia. Photographer Fox Grom captured a remarkable set of images after heavy rain fell on a frozen lake to create the amazing illusion. The 40-year-old, who works as an all-terrain vehicle driver, regularly walks his pet dogs, Alaska and Blizzard, near the natural beauty spot. “I always take pictures of my dogs whilst walking them but on this occasion there was an extraordinary phenomenon“, he said. “The ice was already very thick when it rained heavily making for a spectacular scene”. Here: Husky dog Alaska walks on water in Northern Russia, January 2015. (Photo by Fox Grom/Visual Press Agency)

Tumblr artist VSE OK has created a bizarre and often hilarious collection of photos that capture action figures in strange scenarios. VSE OK displays photos of everything from Bruce Lee using his martial arts skills to make breakfast to ruthless tricks pulled by the Joker (both Heath and Jack).

In this aerial file photo taken on Tuesday, October 31, 2017, a woman walks past a statue of Soviet Union founder Vladimir Lenin at the Russian leased Baikonur cosmodrome, in Kazakhstan. The thousands of statues of Vladimir Lenin spread across the vast region bring to mind poet Vladimir Mayakovsky's ringing line of devotion: “Lenin lived, Lenin lives, Lenin will live”. (Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/AP Photo)

In this Wednesday, March, 5, 2014 photo, Afghan female boxers practice at the Kabul Stadium boxing club, Afghanistan. The women, who are 18 and older, don't have much more than determination, and a trainer who runs them through their paces, watches as they spar, corrects their technique, tells them when to jab, how to protect themselves, when to power through with a left and then a right. (Photo by Massoud Hossaini/AP Photo)