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 a child in a wheelbarrow near a burning tire barricade in the framework of the protests of the last three days due to the increase in fuel prices, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 09 July 2018. Haiti was today practically paralyzed by a transport strike after three days of violent riots due to an increase in fuel prices, which the Government left without effect shortly after the announcement. The Prime Minister, Jack Guy Lafontant, today heads a meeting with representatives of Parliament to assess the situation created after the violent protests, which have left at least three dead and several injured. (Photo by Jean Marc Hervé Abelard/EPA/EFE)

Masked guests attend the “Grand Bal Christian Dior” during the Haute Couture Spring-Summer 2018 fashion collection presented in Paris, Monday, January 22, 2018. (Photo by Kamil Zihnioglu/AP Photo)

Cardi B performs at the “Night Two At Palms Casino Resort's KAOS Dayclub & Nightclub With Cardi B, G-Eazy, J Balvin For Grand Opening Weekend” event on April 6, 2019 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Roger Kisby/Getty Images for Palms Casino Resort)

People wear traditional Chinese outfits as they walk in Chinatown in Bangkok on February 11, 2021, ahead of the start of the Lunar New Year, which ushers in the Year of the Ox on February 12. (Photo by Lillian Suwanrumpha/AFP Photo)

Family members pose for photos near lava flowing from Pacaya Volcano near El Patrocinio village in San Vicente Pacaya, Guatemala, Friday, April 16, 2021. (Photo by Moises Castillo/AP Photo)

A model presents creations by Japanese designer Ayano Ichige from the Autumn/Winter 2022 collection for the label “NON TOKYO” during the Tokyo Fashion Week in Tokyo, Japan, 14 March 2022. The presentation of the Autumn/Winter 2022 collections runs from 14 to 19 March. (Photo by Franck Robichon/EPA/EFE)

The Hindus of Nusa Penida, Bali, Indonesia, carry out their annual Ngaben cremation on April 4, 2022, when they place the bones of those who have died over the past year on to floating animal forms in a ceremony that is said to release the souls of the deceased. (Photo by Gede Sudika/Solent News/Rex Features/Shutterstock)