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)

Police officers speak to a woman in Greenwich Park in London, England on April 4, 2020. The Government has announced a lockdown to slow the spread of Coronavirus and reduce pressure on the NHS. (Photo by Alamy Live News)

Russian Orthodox priest, Father Nikolai Gensitsky, speaks with believers while having a festive meal during the Easter celebrations in a church in the village of Yekaterininskoye in Omsk Region, Russia on April 19, 2020. (Photo by Alexey Malgavko/Reuters)

Buddhist believers wearing faces masks to help protect against the spread of the new coronavirus wait to attend a service to pray for overcoming the COVID-19 outbreak and to celebrate Buddha's birthday at the Chogyesa temple in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, April 30, 2020. (Photo by Ahn Young-joon/AP Photo)

An Indian priest covers his face with a mask as a precaution against coronavirus and prays at a temple, in Prayagraj, India, Monday, June 8, 2020. (Photo by Rajesh Kumar Singh/AP Photo)

4-year-old Tasmina adjusts her protective face mask as she waits with her family for a train at a railway station, as the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues, in Karachi, Pakistan on June 9, 2020. (Photo by Akhtar Soomro/Reuters)

People in ethnic costumes jump over a bonfire during Ivan Kupala Day celebrations held by the Pripyat River in the town of Turauin Gomel Region, Belarus on July 6, 2020. Ivan Kupala Day, also known as Ivana-Kupala or Kupala Night, is a traditional pagan holiday celebrated in eastern Slavic cultures. Various rituals are traditionally performed on Kupala Night, including making flower wreaths, fortune-telling, jumping over bonfires, and burning a wheel-like effigy symbolizing the sun. (Photo by Natalia Fedosenko/TASS)

An Afghan man rides on his donkey, holding balloons for sale during Newroz Day celebrations, a festival marking their spring and new year, in Kabul, Afghanistan March 21, 2017. (Photo by Omar Sobhani/Reuters)