DUTSE — Jigawa State Governor Umar Namadi has converted 1,200 teachers under the J-TEACH scheme to permanent staff and recruited 820 new teachers, bringing the total to 2,020. He presented their letters at Government House, Dutse, on Friday. The governor also distributed 450 bicycles donated by GTBank to pupils who travel long distances to school. Since 2023, about 7,500 teachers have been brought into basic education under J-TEACH, with 3,000 made permanent, while about 2,000 have joined post-basic education, 1,000 of them now permanent. Namadi said postings must be based on need and merit to avoid an imbalance between urban and rural schools.