A march on Washington calling for the Trump administration to respect the rights of women is being copied by activists all over the world.

The "Women's March on Washington" is expected to draw two hundred thousand women and men to the U.S. capital on January 21 the day after President-Elect Donald Trump's inauguration.

Organizers say on their website that the march will send a bold message to the government on their first day in office.

"In the spirit of democracy and honoring the champions of human rights, dignity, and justice who have come before us, we join in diversity to show our presence in numbers too great to ignore," the mission statement reads.

According to a National Park Service's list of First Amendment permit applications, organizers expect 200,000 people to attend.

The organization's website identifies at least 616 cities across the world where similar copycat marches will take place on the same day, with a further 1.3 million people forecast to attend.

Marches are expected in major cities such as London, Kolkata and Sydney but smaller events are also listed to take place in less obvious locations such as Iraq, the Congo and the Antarctic Peninsula.

Although titled as a women's march, organizers say the march is "for any person, regardless of gender or gender identity, who believes women's rights are human rights."

March organizers have said the march is not anti-Trump but rather a call to highlight the rights of women, LGBTQ and other groups suffering discrimination.

The march's agenda also wants an Equal Rights Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

The original movement was started by Teresa Shook, a retired attorney and grandmother in Hawaii who asked Facebook friends if they were interested in protesting the Trump inauguration.

Within a short spell the interest was so great that several veteran protest organizers working on behalf of minority groups were enlisted to help.

The main march in Washington begins at 10.00 a.m. on Saturday January 21.