Engr. Professor Onundi was born in Aiyegunle-Gbedde in 1954, where he attended the Kabba Divisional Joint Educational Primary School, between 1962 to 1968. Also between 1969 to 1971, Professor Onundi attended the Government Secondary School, GSS Dekina and 1972 to 1974 in Government Technical Training School, GTTS Ilorin, where he started his Technical Education. In 1974, he obtained the Intermediate City and Guides of London Institute and Federal Craft Certificates respectively. He also worked between 1974 and 1978 with an indigenous construction company, Monias Nigeria Limited, Ilorin as Assistant Site Supervisor.

As an external candidate and a student of International correspondent School, London, he obtained the Complementary Certificate in Building Science, Calculations and Construction of the City and Guides of London Institute in 1977. Through the Federal Government Crash Programme Scholarship under President Obasanjo’s regime, for six years starting from 1978, he attended the Gamel Nasir School for Foreign Students and the Institute for Architecture and Civil Engineering, Sofia, Bulgaria where he obtained Master of Science in Structural Engineering in 1984.

In 1997, he attended the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Faculty of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Quality Science. Division of External Studies, Rehovot, Israel; where he was awarded Postgraduate Diploma Certificate in Exploration and Exploitation of Ground Water Resource. Using the Scholarship programme provided by the University of Maiduguri for Staff development, in 2012, he graduated from Abubakar Tarfawa Balewa University, ATBU, Bauchi where he specialised in Analysis of Tall Structures Subjected to Aerodynamic loadings for the PhD Certificate in Structural Dynamics. In 2013, he was invited to teach at the National University, Rwanda.

His researches were diversely spread to include but not limited to:

•            Recent Researches on the Influence of Wind Urban Interaction on Structural Response, Power Spectral Densities and Frequencies Appropriate for Design of Tall Engineering Structures;

•            Classification of Nigeria Wind Isopleths for Structural Purposes;

•            Vibration Analysis of High Rise Building with Narrow Rectangular Configuration Using Methods of Initial Parameters;

•            The Influence of Euler Critical Values on the Method of Initial parameters for the Dynamic Analysis of a Multi-Storey Building Subjected to Aerodynamic Forces;

•            The Appropriate Model Geometrical Characteristics suitable for use in an Eiffel Type Subsonic Boundary Layer Wind Tunnel;

•            Experimental Determination of Damping Ratio of a multi-storey Building Subjected to Aerodynamic loadings;

•            An Analysis of Building-Collapse in Nigeria(1971-2016):Challenges for Stakeholders;

•            Assessment of the Properties of Rubberized Bama Gravel Concrete using Destructive Method;

•            Influence of Insurgency on the Qualities, Availability of Construction Materials and Local Coarse Aggregates in Maiduguri;

•            Effects of Fire on the Strength of Reinforced Concrete Structural Members and

•            The Reliability Assessment of Failure Modes and Effect Analysis of Low Rise Multi-Storey Building Constructed with Crushed Stone - Bama Gravel and Cement-Bagasse Ash Concrete in Maiduguri which is a TETFund sponsored research.

Engr. Professor Lateef Olorunfemi Onundi was a Dean of the Faculty of Engineering and Professor of Structural Dynamics Engineering, University of Maiduguri, Maiduguri, Nigeria. As Sub Dean to late Professor John Ohu who was the Substantive Dean, they worked relentlessly together to successfully secure the First National Universities Commission, NUC and Council for Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, COREN accreditations for the Faculty of Engineering in 1997.

As the Dean of the Faculty, while preparing for the successful accreditation, he mobilised the support of the Faculty Alumni towards the building of qualitative laboratory facilities by attracting more than N24.6million worth of equipment for the Civil and Water Resources and Electrical and Electronics Engineering Departments. Apart from this, a N20 million Structural Engineering laboratory is under construction for the Faculty.

As a believer in the spirit of doing it yourself as the solution to the engineering development in the country; under his leadership a committee setup consisting of faculty staff members successfully repaired all equipment and machineries in the faculty laboratories and workshops. As one of the first Nigerians staff member in the Department, for about 14 years, he was the Head of the Department of Civil and Water Resources Engineering, University of Maiduguri.

Apart from been the Head of Civil and Water Resources Engineering Department during the era of Professor Gadzama as Vice Chancellor around 1996, he contributed immensely towards the Physical development of the University as the Superintendent Officer to oversee the affairs of the Physical Planning Unit when he facilitated the completion of the Ramat Library of University of Maiduguri and he was also Chairman for Task for Water Supply, when he ensured adequate qualitative water was made available to the Students’ hostels and staff quarters of the University of Maiduguri.

He is registered with the Nigerian Society of Engineers, NSE and Council for Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, COREN and currently a member of the Technical Committee of the NSE. He has supervised many post graduate students at Masters and Phd Levels respectively. He has also served as Team Leader for the 2018 NUC accreditation panels to Ado Bayero University, Kano, NDA Kaduna and University of Ilorin; member 2019 NUC Resource Verification team for the establishment of Faculty of Engineering, University of Calabar and member 2017 and 2018 COREN accreditation panels for NDA Kaduna and Kano State University of Science and Technology, Wudil respectively.

In 2019 to 2020, he was on sabbatical leave with the University of Jos where he guided the young Department of Civil Engineering to secure full COREN and NUC accreditations. He has examined many senior academic staff for masters and PhD and also assessed many for the position of Reader in the area of Structural Engineering.

Countries and cities visited include London, United Kingdom; on Transit to Bulgaria, 1978. Sofia, Bulgaria, 1978 - 84; Student for M.Sc Certificate; Zurich, Switzerland, on Transit to Israel, 1997;  Israel; Student for PGD Certificate 1997; Rwanda, National University Rwanda; Lecturer 2013; Accra, Ghana. International Conference on Emerging Trends in Engineering and Technology 2014; Malaysia, Inter Universities - Collaborative MoU agreements with the Universiti Malaysia Kelantan (UMK), Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM) in March/April, 2017 and. International University of Sudan, Khartoum in September 2017; Saudi Arabia; Holy Pilgrimage 2018.

On 1st April, 2021, he was appointed Co-ordinator for the Establishment of the Faculty of Engineering, Federal University Lokoja, Kogi State, Nigeria.