In this June 29, 2016 file photo, boats docked at Central Marine in Stuart, Fla., are surrounded by blue green algae. The 153-mile-long Indian River Lagoon has been plagued by harmful algae blooms. Water quality testing data analyzed by the AP showed the average phosphorous level – a byproduct of fertilizers and human waste that algae thrive on, rose nearly 75 percent between 2000 and 2016. (Photo by Greg Lovett/The Palm Beach Post via AP 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)

Brides and grooms sit on top of an Indonesian Army vehicle during a mass wedding ceremony organized in Jakarta, Indonesia, Wednesday, January 28, 2015. More than 5000 couples participated on a mass wedding ceremony to legalized the previous religious marriage ceremonies. Most of the couples have not officially registered their marriage for economic reasons as it cost up to 500,000 IDR (35 euro) to legalized a marriage. The ceremony organized by Rajawali Foundation. (Photo by Achmad Ibrahim/AP Photo)

Voodoo followers, called Pitit Fey, attend a ceremony during the Day of the Dead celebrations at the Meyotte cemetery in Kay Gouye, in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, November 1, 2021. (Photo by Claudia Daut/Reuters)

Gigi Hadid and Emily Ratajkowski celebrated the opening of the shopping centre by taking part in the evening's ribbon cutting ceremony in Mykonos, Greece on June 30, 2018. (Photo by Richard Young/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Afghan female police cadets are seen during their graduation ceremony at Sivas Police Vocational Center Directorate in Sivas, Turkey on March 13, 2018. (Photo by Serhat Zafer/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

A man dressed as a demon poses for a picture as he participates in a ceremony known as Los Talciguines, as part of religious activities to mark the start of the Holy Week in Texistepeque, El Salvador, March 26, 2018. (Photo by Jose Cabezas/Reuters)

A Chinese tourist wears a mask as she arrives at Suvarnabhumi Airport during a welcome ceremony of Chinese Lunar New Year travellers in Bangkok, Thailand on January 22, 2020. (Photo by Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters)