SINGAPORE (AFP) - The southern state of Johor has invited Singaporeans to a massive feast for 100,000 people to celebrate the end of the Ramadan fasting month.

The Dec 22 bash in the state capital Johor Baru, linked to Singapore by a causeway and a bridge, will be a held at an open area the size of five football fields, Singapore's Straits Times reported.

Malaysian Tourism Minister Abdul Kadir Sheikh Fadzir said it was a tradition in predominantly Muslim Malaysia to have an open house during the Hari Raya Puasa festival marking the end of Ramadan.

"Since this time the national open house is being held in Johor Baru, why not invite our closest neighbour?" he was quoted as saying during a visit here this week to drum up interest in the project.

Sharp recession

Johor depends heavily on Singaporean customers, tourists and investors to fuel its economy. Because of a sharp recession in Singapore, businesses in the Malaysian state have been suffering this year.

Organisers of the feast are providing free shuttle buses and trains to ferry Singaporeans to the feast venue, where some 175,000 servings of traditional Malay goodies will be laid out by an army of caterers.

"By God's grace, hopefully it won't rain," said Johor Baru's state tourism director Mohamad Jaffar Awang.