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)

Runners warm up during the Team Pants And Bra photcall at City Hall on January 26, 2012 in London, England. Team Pants and Bra sprinted through central London this morning, encouraging fellow runners to join TeamPB and proudly wear pants and bras for the Virgin London Marathon in April, representing The Prostate Cancer Charity and Breast Cancer Care. (Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images for Prostate Cancer)

Composer, harpist and singer Esther Swift alongside her Italian Salvi pedal harp during a photocall ahead of her upcoming tour, at the Forth Bridge in North Queensferry, Scotland on Tuesday, March 7, 2023. Ms Swift will tour across Scotland solo this month with a programme of original compositions and traditional works. (Photo by Jane Barlow/PA Images via Getty Images)

Jason Arnold, project manager from solarcentury walks between lines of solar panels erected at Weighbridge, Wheal Jane, Baldhu on July 7, 2011 near Truro, England. A ceremony was held today to mark the connection of the 1.4kw solar farm, which on a 6.2 acre plot is the first in the South West and biggest in the UK to date, using 5,680 panels. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

(Top L-R) Playboy Playmates Anna Sophia Berglund, Kayla Rae Reid, Dominique Jane, Heather Rae Young, Alexandra Tyler, Val Keil, (bottom L-R) Audrey Aleen Allen, Ashley Doris, Hiromi Oshima, and Shanice Jordyn attend the Playboy Midsummer Night's Dream party at the Marquee Nightclub at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas on August 27, 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by David Becker/Getty Images for Playboy Enterprises)

Highland dancers perform on Thursday, August 4, 2022 on the Esplanade of Edinburgh Castle at this year's Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo. After a two-year hiatus the Tattoo returns with the 2022 show titled “Voices” with over 800 performers and includes international performances from Mexico, The United States, Switzerland and New Zealand. (Photo by Jane Barlow/PA Images via Getty Images)

Pupils Antonio Marin-Kalisz, 10 (left) and Zofia Krolikwska, 11 (right) from St Mary's Primary School in Leith, UK with local celebrity chef Tony Singh at the unveiling of Edinburgh Community Food's new educational tuk-tuk on Wednesday, October 2, 2024. The tuk-tuk will serve as a mobile educational initiative to teach communities about nutrition by making healthy cooking fun and accessible, and taking it into the heart of the community. (Photo by Jane Barlow/PA Images via Getty Images)