The Zimbabwean government has appealed to private companies with advanced equipment to help recover the body of a tourist who slipped at the Victoria Falls, the Herald newspaper reports.

Zimbabwe's Tourism Minister Mangaliso Ndlovu said retrival efforts were continuing and that there was a challenge of equipment.

He said the government had so far identified only one mine with the required equipment, the newspaper reports.

The minister sent condolences to the family of the tourist whose body is still in the gorge.

The tourist was last pictured walking along the edge of the scenic falls.

Witnesses said the man was taking photos at the tourist attraction site when he slipped.

Minister Ndlovu said the "isolated incident" was highly regretted.

"All necessary precautions will be taken to guard against recurrence of such an unfortunate incident," he said in a statement quoted by the newspaper.

The minister said the retrieval operation had been complicated by location of the body.