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)

People walk as snow falls in a main street in Jerusalem, 17 February 2021. Israeli Forecasters and the Meteorological Service ex​pect snow fall in Jerusalem. (Photo by Abir Sultan/EPA/EFE)

Canadian fashion model Winnie Harlow poses on the red carpet during the MTV Europe Music Awards, in Budapest, Hungary, November 14, 2021. (Photo by Marton Monus/Reuters)

Russian soldiers run along Red Square in central Moscow on September 29, 2022, as the square is sealed prior to a ceremony of the incorporation of the new territories into Russia. Russia will formally annex four territories of Ukraine its troops occupy at a grand ceremony in Moscow on Friday, the Kremlin has announced, after Russia suggested it could to use nuclear weapons to defend the territories. (Photo by Alexander Nemenov/AFP Photo)

An Orthodox Jew child from Israel yells as other members of the community protest at a government facility where they are being held after being detained last Sunday during an operation by agents of the National Institute of Migration (INM), in Huixtla, Chiapas state, Mexico on September 28, 2022. (Photo by Jose Torres/Reuters)

A girl peers from between light decorations at a Christmas fair which opened ahead of the holiday season in Bucharest, Romania, Friday, November 25, 2022. Municipal authorities in the Romanian capital, quoted by local media, stated that holiday season city light decoration levels will remain at last year's level and use energy saving solutions. (Photo by Vadim Ghirda/AP Photo)

A combination picture shows Aleppo's Umayyad mosque, Syria, before it was damaged on March 12, 2009 (top) and after it was damaged (bottom) December 13, 2016. (Photo by Omar Sanadiki/Reuters)

Interior designer Zahra Afridi (R) kicks a punching bag during a kickboxing training session at her home in Islamabad February 10, 2014. Afridi runs her own interior design company. Her most recent project was a Classic Rock Coffee cafe in Islamabad. Though instability continues to plague Pakistan and many areas are dominated by social conservatism, some of the country's more affluent residents have worked to fashion a very different kind of lifestyle for themselves. Pictures of men and women taking part in all sorts of activities and professions – from being a pilates instructor, to a textile retail entrepreneur, to a member of a rock band – offer a different view of Pakistan to images of conflict that often make the news. (Photo by Zohra Bensemra/Reuters)