A boatman rests on his boat in the flooded Ganges river under the Shastri bridge at Daraganj Ghat, in Allahabad, India on August 22, 2019. (Photo by Sanjay Kanojia/AFP 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)

A boy plays on the glass at Thailand's first skywalk in Bangkok, Thailand on November 18, 2018. (Photo by Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters)

Traditional dancers from southern state Tamil Nadu prepare themselves as they wait to perform during a press preview of displays being featured for the upcoming Republic Day parade in New Delhi on January 22, 2019. The Republic Day is an annual showcase of India's military hardware and cultural diversity. India celebrates its 70th Republic Day on January 26. (Photo by Sajjad Hussain/AFP Photo)

A Palestinian woman takes a picture of a member of the Israeli security forces as he takes her picture in a street in Jerusalem on December 16, 2017, as demonstrations continue to flare in the Middle East and elsewhere over the US president' s declaration of Jerusalem as Israel' s capital. (Photo by Ahmad Gharabli/AFP Photo)

Jackie Galarza greets the Camarasaurus dinosaur held by Houston Ferguson during the “Jurassic Quest” experience at Broward County Convention Center on July 08, 2022 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Fans of dinosaurs can walk through moving and roaring animatronic replicas of the now extinct creatures during the three-day event. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

A Netherlands fan with his face painted is seen in the stand before the match against Poland during UEFA Nations League action at PGE Narodowy in Warsaw, Poland on September 22, 2022. (Photo by Kacper Pempel/Reuters)

A cow carrying a bell and autumn flowers headgear walks by in front of spectators at the traditional cattle show in Schwellbrunn, Switzerland, 26 September 2022. The traditional show in the Appenzell region is held annually in autumn, when local farmers return from the alp with their groomed and cleaned cows to present them on a show ground. “The most beautiful and best performing cows are awarded prizes”, the Appenzellerland tourism office adds on their website. (Photo by Gian Ehrenzeller/EPA/EFE)