AIIA chief executive officer Rob Durie said the AIIA will work with ICT companies in other states over the next four months to expand the program. Durie added the main aim of the program is to allow SMEs to share knowledge and resources for joint activities.

"By facilitating the diverse range of ICT capabilities into business networks, AIIA's small to medium enterprise members intend to pool their resources to bid for ICT contracts normally out of their reach," Durie said.

"AIIA members will not only be assisted to establish partnerships with similar small Australian companies, but also to forge alliances with multinational corporations to tap into their substantial resources to access new markets."

Multimedia Victoria is responsible for the state-wide implementation of the information and communication technology policy, Connecting Victoria.

The announcement mirrors various steps the Queensland government has taken to enable SMEs in Queensland to partner for tenders on government projects, namely by the introduction of the ICT Industry Workgroup formed last year.