Virgi Agita Sari is a development economist interested in the intersection between development economics, welfare policies, and policy evaluation. Her research largely focuses on poverty-inequality nexus in developing countries, policy monitoring and evaluation, and understanding the distributional consequences of pandemic and climate change. Virgi holds a PhD in Development Policy and Management and MSc in Development Economics from the Global Development Institute, the University of Manchester. Her PhD dissertation examined the concept, evidence, and the role of policies in fostering economic inclusion.

Prior to joining LSE, she did substantive research on poverty and inequality and policy engagement with government counterparts in developing countries through different capacities. She joined LSE from her post as a Research Fellow in Economic Policy at UCL Institute of Innovation and Public Purpose. She also worked as an Economist at The World Bank where she engaged closely with the national governments in monitoring and assessing the impact of welfare policies in Indonesia, Timor-Leste, and the Philippines. More recently, her research focuses on examining the distributional consequences of global challenges including disruptive technology, the COVID-19 pandemic, and climate change.