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 girl wearing a Santa hat surfs at Bondi Beach on December 25, 2019 in Sydney, Australia. December is one of the hottest months of the year across Australia, with Christmas Day traditionally involving a trip to the beach and celebrations outdoors. (Photo by Mark Evans/Getty Images)

A Chinese girl in traditional dress eats her lunch in a Five Guys restaurant in between shooting videos for her Chinese social media account on October 18, 2023 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

A girl holds her hedgehog to be blessed by a priest at the Cathedral San Bernardino de Siena during the ceremony commemorating the Feast of San Antonio Abad, the patron saint of domestic animals, in Xochimilco on the outskirts of Mexico City, Mexico on January 17, 2024. (Photo by Raquel Cunha/Reuters)

A girl holds up a photo of Pope Benedict XVI which reads “tear his face” during a protest against the World Youth Day 2011 celebrations taking place on August 17, 2011 in Madrid, Spain. Initiated by Pope John Paul II in 1985, World Youth Day youth-oriented events for the celebration of the Catholic faith are held every three years in a different country; this time in Madrid from August 16 – 21, with Pope Benedict XVI in attendance. (Photo by Denis Doyle/Getty Images)

A Japanese girl participates in a calligraphy contest to the celebrate the New Year in Tokyo January 5, 2015. Over 3,000 calligraphers, having qualified in country wide competitions throughout Japan, took part in the annual contest to celebrate the new year. (Photo by Issei Kato/Reuters)

“One innovative artist has created quirky artwork which re-imagines classical paintings with the faces of famous modern day cover stars such as Angeline Jolie. Multimedia producer Eisen Bernard Bernardo, 28, from Los Baños, Philippines, has created the clever works for his series called “Mag + Art”, where he takes photos of celebrities from magazine covers and carefully places them over images of people in famous classical paintings”. – Caters News. Photo: Quirky Magazine covers: Keira Knightley and the girl with the pearl earring. (Photo by Eisen Bernard Bernardo/Caters News)

“One artist doesn’t mind if people class her work as rubbish. Thats because all of her pieces are made out of junk found in charity shops, garage sales and in and around her home. Using the likes of buttons, broken jewelry and toy parts, Jane Perkins, from Exeter, UK, has recreated the famous faces of Albert Einstein, Kate Middleton, The Queen, as well as some of the worlds most iconic paintings and photographs”. – Caters News. Photo: Afghan Girl (based on photograph by Steve McCurry/National Geographic). (Photo by Jane Perkins/Caters News)