An EF-2 tornado begins to rope out on the outskirts of Mangum, Oklahoma, U.S. on May 20, 2019. Multiple tornadoes touched down and heavy rain flooded areas across Oklahoma. (Photo by Brett Conner/ZUMA Wire)

TCU Horned Frogs twirler performs at halftime of the game against the Baylor Bears at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas, USA on November 6, 2021. (Photo by Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports)

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 young couple rest on a bench, as a street actor wearing an Angel costume speaks on the phone in Nikolskaya street near the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, March 31, 2021. (Photo by Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP Photo)

Fashionistas wait for the start of Johannesburg Fashion Week 2023 in Johannesburg, South Africa, Wednesday, November 8, 2023. (Photo by Jerome Delay/AP Photo)

A swimmer goes for a dip in freezing temperatures at the Serpentine Lake in Hyde Park, central London on December 1, 2023, as temperatures in the capital dip below zero for another night. The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for parts of the UK with freezing temperatures and snow expected in large areas. (Photo by Ben Cawthra/London News Pictures)

A vendor works on a Christmas star lantern, locally known as parol, at a street market in Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines on November 29, 2023. (Photo by Eloisa Lopez/Reuters)

American singer-songwriter Camila Cabello performs on the Other Stage during the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm, in Pilton, Somerset, Britain, on June 29, 2024. (Photo by Dylan Martinez/Reuters)