Wetlands construction and restoration has been adopted as an agri-environmental measure in some of the Baltic Sea Region countries to help make agriculture more environmentally sustainable. However, Sweden’s experience shows that despite great efforts, the country only achieved 60% of its target of adding 12,000 hectares of wetlands in the agricultural landscape between 2000 and 2010.The main objective of this study, conducted within the EU-financed project Baltic COMPASS, was to draw lessons from Sweden’s wetland implementation and identify key enabling and disabling factors, especially in the governance system. Of special interest is to what extent wetlands can generate multiple benefits. The study is based on a participatory analysis involving interviews with professionals from governmental agencies, civil society organizations and the private sector, carried out in January to June 2012