Which country became the first in Africa to receive verified recognition from the WHO for eliminating onchocerciasis (river blindness) as a public health problem?

When the WHO declared in May 2023 that COVID-19 no longer constituted a 'Global Health Emergency', what was their official estimate of the cumulative death toll directly or indirectly attributable to the pandemic?

As of recent years, the remaining countries where wild poliovirus transmission continues to be endemic are located in which region?