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)

A roadside vendor selling apples is seen through a plastic sheet that he uses to cover himself from rain, in Srinagar, Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir on November 14, 2018. (Photo by Danish Ismail/Reuters)

A girl is seen in a bakery in the old walled town of Harar in eastern Ethiopia, May 19, 2015. Daily life of people in Ethiopia, where elections are held this weekend, is portrayed in the east African nation's churches and mosques, coffee shops and markets, both in the capital Addis Ababa and the walled town of Harar in the east. Ethiopia, home to nearly 100 million people, holds the first poll on Sunday since long-serving leader Meles Zenawi died in 2012. (Photo by Siegfried Modola/Reuters)

An Afghan man works at a traditional yarn factory in Heart province, Afghanistan July 28, 2015. (Photo by Mohammad Shoib/Reuters)

A man photographs the main engines of the space shuttle orbiter Discovery on display at the Udvar-Hazy Smithsonian National Air and Space Annex Museum in Chantilly, Virginia August 28, 2015. Shuttle Discovery had 27 years of service and flew 39 times before being retired in 2011. (Photo by Gary Cameron/Reuters)

Food affected villagers cross flood waters through a bamboo bridge in the flood affected Morigaon district of Assam state, India, 05 July 2016. Continuous rain since last couple of days inundated six districts of Assam effecting more than 100 thousand people in the second wave of floods in Assam state. (Photo by EPA/Stringer)

A paper mache pig meant to mock Donald Trump sits on display at a protest against the Republican presidential candidate before the start of the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, USA, 17 July 2016. Numerous protest groups are expected in Cleveland throughout the four-day-long convention. (Photo by Jim Lo Scalzo/EPA)