A/HRC/21/38 60. The Special Representative travelled to the town of Renk to assess in person the situation of children returning from the Sudan living in camps and host communities. Although her trip to Jonglei was cancelled, the Special Representative met United Nations and civil society partners and raised concerns about the abduction of children in the area. IX. Towards universal ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict 61. The Special Representative continues to mobilize support for the signing and ratification of the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict. During the reporting period, she held bilateral meetings with Member States that had not ratified the treaty. The Office also continued to conduct media outreach to promote broader awareness, information and support. 62. The Special Representative wishes to reiterate her urgent call upon States to establish 18 years as the minimum age for voluntary recruitment into the armed forces when depositing their binding declaration (under article 3) upon ratification of the Optional Protocol. 63. Since the launch of the global campaign on ratification, ―Zero Under 18‖ in May 2010, important progress has been achieved. Between May 2011 and May 2012, the Optional Protocol was signed by Saint Lucia and ratified by San Marino. In addition, five Member States (Côte d’Ivoire, Grenada, Malaysia, the Niger and Saudi Arabia) acceded to the Optional Protocol, bringing the total number of States parties to 147. A total of 23 Member States have signed but not ratified the Optional Protocol. 64. Given the resource implications and reporting requirements that ratification and implementation entail, the Special Representative would like to encourage leadership by one or more countries that have already ratified the Optional Protocol to provide guidance and other forms of assistance to those countries willing to ratify. X. Conclusions and recommendations 65. The Special Representative welcomes the strengthened collaboration between her Office and the United Nations human rights system, and reiterates her continued support, including through regular information-sharing and advocacy for the protection of children affected by armed conflict. The Special Representative reiterates that, unless all parties to conflict adhere to their commitments, comply with their international obligations and are held accountable for non-compliance, there will be no improvement in the situation of children in armed conflict. To this end, the Special Representative makes the recommendations below. A. Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the involvement of children in armed conflict 66. The Special Representative urges States parties to the Convention on the Rights of the Child to strengthen national and international measures for the prevention of recruitment of children into the armed forces or armed groups and their use in hostilities, in particular by signing and ratifying the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the involvement of children in armed conflict and enacting 15