He said such a move tarnished the reputation of the majority of citizens, who are law-abiding.

"Over the decades, Nigerians have been victims of mislabelling. Such gross misrepresentation fails to reflect the true essence of our diverse and resilient nation," President Tinubu, who is currently on a private tour in France, said in a speech read by Deputy President Kashim Shettima.

Mr Tinubu added that "the association of internet crimes with the entire Nigerian populace lacks statistical evidence" and does not reflect "everyday Nigerians", whom he described as "hardworking, honest citizens who contribute significantly to various fields globally, from artificial intelligence to medicine".

In 2020, the FBI, the US internal security and intelligence agency, ranked Nigeria 16th among countries most impacted by cybercrime.

Cybercrime costs the country $500m (£395m) every year, according to the Nigerian Communications Commission.