CISA is located in a region of Africa where there is no other research centre displaying similar characteristics, with peer institutions located primarily in Eastern or Central Africa.

The CISA facilities are located in the city of Caxito, 60 km from the capital of Luanda, in the urban centre of Dande Municipality, in Bengo Province. This province spans a large area surrounding the province hosting Luanda, contains a population of 356 641 inhabitants, according to the general population census, and bordering the provinces of Zaire and Uíge to the north.

The three Dande Municipality communities of Caxito, Mabubas and Úcua were defined as the priority intervention target for the CISA Project, with their combined population of approximately 60,000 inhabitants distributed across 69 neighbourhoods displaying both urban and rural characteristics.

Geographic knowledge about the region, some of its epidemiological characteristics, specifically the outbreaks of haemorrhaging fevers, and the various infrastructural connections in this area, interlinking Luanda with provinces to the north, were among the reasons behind the choice of this location for the CISA Project.