The article discusses the importance of wetland conservation and proposes a cost-effective assessment model to identify global wetland conservation priorities and set targets for protected area (PA) expansion. The study highlights that wetlands, which are crucial for biodiversity, have significantly declined in extent and quality due to human activities and climate change. It emphasizes the need for comprehensive global-scale mapping of wetland conservation priorities and targets to enhance the efficiency of wetland protection. The authors propose a model that integrates wetland conservation value and human impact-related indicators to identify 28% of the potential global wetland distribution as conservation priorities. However, only 44% of these areas are currently protected by existing protected areas. To address this gap, the study suggests three target-setting scenarios for PA expansion, which can contribute additional 9.40%, 42.40%, and 55.97% to the current protected area coverage, respectively. The results show that Asia has the largest distribution of conservation priorities, followed by Africa, Europe, South America, North America, and Oceania. The study also identifies countries with high contributions to global wetland conservation priorities and those with significant areas of unprotected wetlands, highlighting the need for enhanced protection in these regions. The article concludes by discussing the policy implications of the findings, emphasizing the importance of bridging the gap between conservation science and political theory required for the post-2025 Strategic Framework for Global Wetland Conservation and Development. It suggests that the proposed prioritization framework and targets can provide technical support for contracting parties of the Convention on Wetlands and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), helping to achieve their conservation goals. The study acknowledges limitations such as data quality uncertainties and the need for further validation and optimization at the national level. It also highlights the importance of monitoring and predicting wetland biodiversity after PA establishment and calls for a global collaborative mechanism to address the challenges of expanding PAs versus managing existing ones.The article discusses the importance of wetland conservation and proposes a cost-effective assessment model to identify global wetland conservation priorities and set targets for protected area (PA) expansion. The study highlights that wetlands, which are crucial for biodiversity, have significantly declined in extent and quality due to human activities and climate change. It emphasizes the need for comprehensive global-scale mapping of wetland conservation priorities and targets to enhance the efficiency of wetland protection. The authors propose a model that integrates wetland conservation value and human impact-related indicators to identify 28% of the potential global wetland distribution as conservation priorities. However, only 44% of these areas are currently protected by existing protected areas. To address this gap, the study suggests three target-setting scenarios for PA expansion, which can contribute additional 9.40%, 42.40%, and 55.97% to the current protected area coverage, respectively. The results show that Asia has the largest distribution of conservation priorities, followed by Africa, Europe, South America, North America, and Oceania. The study also identifies countries with high contributions to global wetland conservation priorities and those with significant areas of unprotected wetlands, highlighting the need for enhanced protection in these regions. The article concludes by discussing the policy implications of the findings, emphasizing the importance of bridging the gap between conservation science and political theory required for the post-2025 Strategic Framework for Global Wetland Conservation and Development. It suggests that the proposed prioritization framework and targets can provide technical support for contracting parties of the Convention on Wetlands and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), helping to achieve their conservation goals. The study acknowledges limitations such as data quality uncertainties and the need for further validation and optimization at the national level. It also highlights the importance of monitoring and predicting wetland biodiversity after PA establishment and calls for a global collaborative mechanism to address the challenges of expanding PAs versus managing existing ones.