The Palaszczuk Government will use a mission to India and Singapore this month to position Queensland as an innovation powerhouse, boosting its trade and investment ties in key sectors like international education, innovation and tourism.
Minister for Innovation and Tourism Industry Development Kate Jones will spearhead the seven-day mission that starts with meetings in Singapore to promote Queensland’s tourism opportunities to investors in a bid to grow and diversify the state’s $14 billion tourism investment pipeline.
"India is a great source of capital investment for our state and is surging as a growth market for visitors to Queensland," Ms Jones said.
"The region offers significant growth, diversity and opportunity for Queensland businesses as a major economic force in Asia and a driver of global growth.
"Singapore is well-placed to help us take full advantage of emerging opportunities in the broader ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) region, our fifth-largest merchandise export market."
Ms Jones will have a series of meetings with some of Asia’s leading tourism agents along with tech experts and multinationals.
Strengthening Queensland’s world-class international education and training sector is also on the agenda with Ms Jones – the state’s Ministerial Champion for International Education – set to meet education agents and industry partners in India.
International education and training is the state’s second-largest services export, worth $4.37 billion and 21,000 jobs in Queensland.
There are more than 120,000 students studying across Queensland.
"International education is the platform for Queensland to attract global talent to our regions and India is a growth market," she said.
"We’re shaping a new strategy to grow this sector that focuses on research and innovation.
"Queensland universities already have significant research partnerships with some of India’s most prestigious institutions. We want to capitalise on those relationships to build on this sector."
