The Queensland International Education and Training (IET) Partnership Fund, launched by Queensland education minister Kate Jones, will provide A$6m over five years to support programmes and ideas that align with the strategy’s key initiatives and goals, including building market share to 20%.

“IET is incredibly important to our state’s economy, contributing $2.8bn annually in export revenue and employing 19,000 Queenslanders,” Jones said in a statement.

“With the right initiatives we can grow IET to be worth an estimated $7.5bn delivering an additional 6,000 jobs by 2026”

“With the right initiatives we can grow IET to be worth an estimated $7.5bn delivering an additional 6,000 jobs by 2026.”

One of the largest of its sort in Australia, the fund seeks to uncover “grassroots ideas” from a range of stakeholders, including institutions, local government, community groups and students, as well as help establish organisations to develop initiatives to support international education.

Funding packages available range from $5,000 to $150,000, with applicants required to match the amount received.

Among the initiatives outlined in the state’s strategy announced in November 2016 were regional goals which aim to encourage students to study outside of capital city, Brisbane, which currently attracts a third of the state’s international students, 50,000.

Tom Tate, mayor of the city of Gold Coast, south of Brisbane, said in a statement his city’s schools were embracing international students.

“We are committed to growing international education here on the Gold Coast, not just through our schools but also at Griffith Gold Coast and at Bond University,” he said.

The launch of the IET Partnership Fund will be followed by the inaugural IET summit, also on the Gold Coast, next month, which will bring together industry stakeholders to discuss how to grow international education in Queensland.

Expressions of interest for funding will close on February 27.